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Kevin Pietersen has slammed England batters’ lack of commitment, saying except Joe Root, most of them take it ‘too easy’ and think when they fail they can ‘just play golf’.
Kevin Pietersen (AFP Photo)
Kevin Pietersen has questioned England batters’ commitment to scoring big knocks, saying everyone except Joe Root lacks ‘hunger’ and ‘desire’ to contribute to the team. He even said that most players have it ‘too easy’ because they think when they fail, they can ‘have the day off and play golf’.
Pietersen went on this angry rant after the first innings of the 2nd 2025 ODI between India and England in Cuttack on Sunday. The visitors were bowled out for 304 in 49.5 overs with Root and Ben Duckett top-scoring with 69 (72) and 65 (56), both of whom got out against the run of play. It was the fifth time England got bowled out in this eight-match white-ball series, while failing to take all 10 Indian wickets even once.
“It seems to me there’s just a lack of hunger and a lack of desire to go and get that 130, 140. That’s what’s missing,” Pietersen said on Star Sports. “Like, it’s just too easy. Get 40, get 50, get 60. That’s cool. Everything’s fine. Got my 50, got my 60. I’ll probably play the next game. If I don’t, I’ll have the day off and go and play golf, and I’m gonna do what I like. It just seems to me like they’re just lacking that bit of something that says, ‘Hey, man, come on. Let’s get that 100, let’s get that 130.’ This team here should be scoring 350 today.”
“It could have been Joe Root, yes, it could have. But then you have a look at what Duckett did. Should it have been Duckett? Could it have been Duckett? Yeah, absolutely. Root is quality. I’m not gonna for one second, stand here and start saying, ‘Joe Root, Joe Root, Joe Root.’ I’m only gonna talk about how good he is and how great he is, because at the end of the day, without Root, goodness me, where would we be? So he turns up, he misses out the other evening, he wasn’t gonna miss out tonight. And I know. Having spent a lot of time with Root, he burns, and that will absolutely kill him that he’s got out for 60. I’m not so sure getting out for 60 burns the other players,” he added.
304 proved to be far from enough as India chased it down with more than five overs and four wickets to spare. The hosts took an unassailable 2-0 lead in the series with just one match to go.
Fans just want you to win: Pietersen takes a dig on ‘entertainment’ rhetoric
Throughout the tour, England players have spoken about how they want to be a team that entertains and that ‘people want to watch’. Pietersen took a swipe at that, too, saying fans don’t care about anything else until the team wins.
“… There’s a level of comfort in this England team that everything’s just gonna be okay,” he said. “And we’re gonna play a brand of cricket that we’re excited to play. We’re going to be a team that everybody wants to watch. But I think there comes a point when you’ve actually got to sit the guys down and say, ‘Playing for England, you need responsibility and you need to understand and accept that there are consequences for not winning matches. You need to win games of cricket.’
“I know as an England player, now as an England fan, and having been in the England dressing room for a number of years, the fans want to win. End of story. They don’t care how you win, they just want you to win,” Pietersen concluded.
The final ODI will be played on February 12 in Ahmedabad.
