Filed under: Cricket, England Cricket, Tests, Sri Lanka Cricket
The England cricket team now has three captains in three different forms of the game leading to accusations that they have too many chiefs and not enough Indians.Fortunately they play India later this summer.
Andrew Strauss, who has stepped down from the one-day game, said that the split captaincy can work well although other skipper Alastair Cook disagreed whilst the other one, Stuart Broad was undecided.
Strauss has retired from the one-day arena blaming an excessive workload. We're told that the physical demands of the modern cricketer take their toll but you have to remember cricket is one of the few games in the world where it's possible to put on weight during a match. Mike Gatting had to retire on doctor's order before he got any bigger. Cook wasn't considered good enough to merit a place in the one-day team during the last World Cup. Now he's considered our best player. That gives you some idea how well the rest of the team performed.
All three skippers are regulars in the Test team meaning the selectors will now looking to pick another three vice captains for cover.
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The good news is that England go in to this summer series against Sri Lanka and India with a chance of becoming the number one team in the world in Test cricket. I never thought I'd ever be typing up that sentence in my lifetime - or anyone else's.
India currently hold that distinction. Indeed, they have never lost a Test series under MS Dhoni's captaincy.
The Sri Lankans present the first obstacle in England's path and the less formidable one. Their attack is missing Lasith Malinga and Muttiah Muralitharan, and as a result look a lot less dangerous offensively.
Then batting is as strong as ever with Tillakaratne Dilshan, Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara possessing bags of experience and tons of runs.
One worry for the hosts could be the form of Kevin Pietersen, who averaged over 50 in all forms in his first two years in the England team but under 40 in his past three.
KP returned home from the World Cup despite being told his hernia could be managed, I think at one point it was out scoring him.
But he decided the pain was too much to bear meaning he missed the World Cup and the lucrative IPL afterwards, which is the biggest hernia in the game.
KP is one of many sportsmen who has got into trouble with his Twitter account.
If all sporting stars were banned from using Twitter some of their fans would be forced into doing something about it - like getting a life.
The only good thing Twitter offers us is the opportunity to abuse famous people from the comfort of our own homes.
Previously the only way to verbally assault a celebrity was by stalking them and that, I've found, is just too time consuming.
Playing at home is a huge perk for the modern day cricketer just as playing away is a huge perk for the married man.
The only drawback to playing cricket at home is the danger of broken windows.
888sport offer a special 100-1 price that England win all seven test matches this summer, a series of results that would see them climb to the top of the rankings.
That could happen but then again I could sleep with a model and take a super-injunction out against her. I'd be far more likely to tell everyone about it.
England are an industry best price 4/-1 with 888sport to win the first Test with 9-2 offered that they complete a 3-0 whitewash.
888sport also offer 5-1 price that KP-scores a ton in Cardiff while he is 4/1 to be the top England run scorer in the series. Both bets tempt.
Former skipper Michael Vaughan said, "If Kevin Pietersen feels people have been knocking him or said things he doesn't agree with then it is not a bad thing for England because he is at his most dangerous when he has a point to prove."
Significantly he also says that he thinks Zaheer Khan is the only bowler who can trouble him this summer which is a tad disrespectful to just about everyone else.
Either way, KP with a point to prove points the way to having a punt on him.
Back Pietersen to score a ton against the Sri Lankans at Cardiff and to be the highest English run scorer in the three match series.
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Source: http://www.fanhouse.co.uk/2011/05/26/betting-kevin-pietersen-england-cricket/
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