ECB, Downton apologise to Pietersen

Comments were a breach of the settlement agreement, says board.

LONDON:

The saga of Kevin Pietersen’s extraordinary exit from the international arena took a fresh twist Friday when the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and its managing director, Paul Downton, apologised for criticism of the batsman made by the former England wicketkeeper.

“On May 22 during an interview on BBC Test Match Special, Paul Downton of the ECB made a series of comments about Kevin Pietersen with which Kevin takes issue, including the comments he made regarding his perception of Kevin’s attitude during the Sydney Test on last winter’s Ashes tour,” said an ECB statement issued late Friday.

“Some of those comments were made in breach of a settlement agreement between the ECB and Kevin Pietersen which was concluded at the time Kevin’s central contract was terminated earlier this year.

“Paul Downton and the ECB both apologise to Kevin Pietersen for those comments made that were in breach of the settlement agreement and have confirmed that they will abide by its terms moving forward.”

Until recently, the ECB’s explanations for effectively ending the international career of Pietersen, England’s leading run-scorer across all formats, had contained only limited detail.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 1^st, 2014.

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