Pietersen Admits Resigning Before He Was Pushed

Kevin Pietersen has confirmed what most people suspected: he resigned as England's cricket captain last week before he was pushed by the England and Wales Cricket Board.

Pietersen finally broke his silence about the circumstances surrounding his departure after five months and just three Tests in charge in his column in the 'News of the World' newspaper.

Pietersen had warned ECB officials that he would resign the captaincy unless Peter Moores was removed from his job as national coach.

Though the ECB executive board did get rid of Moores they also decided that Pietersen should also lose his job after an emergency meeting conducted by telephone conference call last Tuesday.

Pietersen said that he received a phone call from Hugh Morris, the managing director of the England team, while holidaying in South Africa. Morris explained that the emergency board meeting had taken place and it had been determined that Pietersen's resignation would take immediate effect.

Pietersen, who was under the impression that he wouuld be meeting with Morris on his return to London, said: "Excuse me? On what basis has it been accepted? They had no answer. Next, I received an email from the ECB saying: 'Your resignation is of immediate effect'.

"To lose a job of that importance to a person - and, more importantly, of that importance to a nation - over the phone is crushing."

The 28-year-old Hampshire batsman added that he knew nothing of Moores' sacking until the following day. "I still don't understand why it happened like that and I still haven't been given a reason. I was surprised because after that phone call I thought Moores was still in the job, with them taking my resignation because of the strategy I had drawn up and my conclusion.

"So when they got rid of Moores I did ask the question - but got absolutely nothing.
"I'm not angry - I'm just hurt, disappointed and upset that a childhood dream has been taken away from me."
Pietersen will be back in the ranks for the tour of the West Indies which gets underway next week. Andrew Strauss will captain the side with batting coach Andy Flower responsible for coaching alongside team manager Phil Neale, the former Worcestershire captain and Warwickshire director of coaching.

The ECB have yet to decide on a long-term successor to Moores who is believed to have agreed a compensation package of around pound 300,000 to settle his rolling contract.

Moores has already been linked with a possible coaching vacancy at Lancashire which would take him back to his roots as he went to school in Macclesfield and had schoolboy trials at Old Trafford.