Hussain blames ECB for crisis

By IANS,

London : Former England captain Nasser Hussain feels that the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has let down Kevin Pietersen after having shown faith in his captaincy just four months ago.


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Pietersen quit as England captain after a long fall-out with coach Peter Moores.

Hussain, however, said that Pietersen could have handled the situation in a better manner.

“I don’t for a minute question his motives in making it known that he could not work with Peter Moores.

“He is a single-minded character and all he will have wanted was to do what was best for the England team. But he went about it in completely the wrong way, which led to this terrible situation.”

“The ECB must have known when they made him captain that he was someone who would ask questions of his team and the management and do whatever it took to stop them under-achieving.

“That is surely what they wanted, as well as expected, from him. When it came to the crunch they weren’t quite prepared to back him to the hilt.”

Hussain said that ECB should have given a free hand to Pietersen.

“They could have said: ‘OK, we will give you everything you want, but on your head be it.’ He could have been left to run the show, then been judged once the Ashes were over.”

“The ECB would not go all the way by giving him the coaching team he wanted. To do so would have made Pietersen the most powerful England skipper there has ever been and they weren’t prepared to do that because he didn’t understand the political game or how to play it.”

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