Kevin Pietersen set to play for Dolphins again in Ram Slam T20 Challenge
Pietersen set to play for Dolphins again in Ram Slam T20 Challenge
Durban: Former England batting star Kevin Pietersen will play for South African cricket franchise Dolphins again this season in the national Twenty20 competition, it was announced Wednesday. The 36-year-old South African has been hired by the Durban-based team for five group games and will remain if they reach the knockout stages Dolphins finished runners-up in the T20 competition last season with Pietersen scoring 401 runs in seven innings. Pietersen has been sidelined since April, recovering from an injury he sustained playing in the Indian Premier League. Born in Pietermaritzburg, 80 kilometres north-west of Durban, Pietersen quit South Africa because he believed racial transformation policies in sport would deprive him of national team opportunities. READ: Kevin Pietersen: Match-fixers like Mohammad Aamer should not be given second chance
Quickly establishing himself as a batting star in England, he represented his adopted country in 104 Tests and 136 One-Day Internationals (ODI). Pietersen was axed two years ago after a 5-0 Ashes drubbing by Australia and has become a T20 batsman-for-hire, playing in various competitions from Australia to the West Indies. READ: Kevin Pietersen drops out Lord’s from his top 10 cricket grounds list
Pietersen, like many recently opined that match-fixers like Mohammad Aamer should not be let back into the game. Pietersen feels Aamer should be banned for life for his part in 2010 spot-fixing scandal but also cautioned England players against provoking Pakistan quick when he makes his return to Lord’s for first Test against hosts on Thursday. Aamer will return to the scene tackling all the previous scandals where he deliberately bowled no balls at the same venue during Test at 2010. Pietersen was part of the team that played against Pakistan at Lord’s when the scandal took place in August 2010 and feels anyone caught for spot-fixing should be banned for life.