Pietersen left out of England squad for Indian tour

LONDON: Kevin Pietersen was omitted from England’s 16-man Test squad yesterday for the upcoming tour of India, keeping the country’s star batsman out of favor after the text-message controversy that threatened team unity and his future at international level.
England management held a series of talks with Pietersen over the last few weeks after he was dropped last month for sending “provocative” texts to South Africa players about then-test captain Andrew Strauss, who has since retired.
However, Pietersen’s name was missing from the squad that contains uncapped batsmen Joe Root and Nick Compton — the grandson of England great Denis Compton — and will be captained for the first time on a full-time basis by Alastair Cook.
“There are issues still to be resolved, Kevin has not been considered for selection for the India tour,” ECB managing director Hugh Morris said.
While that leaves the door open for a return to the team for Pietersen, possibly in time for the tour of New Zealand starting February, there clearly is still conflict between management and the brash South African-born batsman.
“It is disappointing, he is a world class player but it is about a team game ... It is not just about an individual in a changing room. Iit is a team ethic and unity,” national selector Geoff Miller said.
Pietersen, who averages nearly 50 in test matches and is the most prolific batsman in the world when he at his best, was stripped of his central contract this month and wasn’t included in the squad for the World Twenty20, which begins Tuesday.
Squad: Alastair Cook (captain), James Anderson, Jonny Bairstow, Ian Bell, Tim Bresnan, Stuart Broad, Nick Compton, Steven Finn, Graham Onions, Eoin Morgan, Monty Panesar, Samit Patel, Matt Prior, Joe Root, Graeme Swann, Jonathan Trott.