Kevin Pietersen may have been deemed “disengaged” by the England management, but at Surrey he is viewed as an ideal role-model for young players

George Dobell26-Mar-20152:33

‘World class KP signing a massive boost’ – Stewart

Kevin Pietersen may have been deemed “disengaged” by the England management, but at Surrey he is viewed as an ideal role-model for young players.Only a few weeks after the ECB hinted that Pietersen was not seen as a “positive dressing room influence,” Surrey have made it clear that they view him quite differently by re-signing him for the 2015 season.Underlining his commitment to regaining a place in the England side, Pietersen has negotiated his release from his IPL contract with Sunrisers Hyderabad and announced that he will donate all his wages from his Surrey deal to his charity, the Kevin Pietersen Foundation.Pietersen has not, at this stage, signed to play anything other than first-class cricket for the club and is still scheduled to play in the Caribbean Premier League from the third week of June. All that could change, however, depending on what else happens in the next few weeks. He is likely to make his first appearance of the season against Oxford MCCU in the Parks on April 12, with his first Championship match of the season coming on April 19 against Glamorgan in Cardiff.”We’ve never had a problem with him,” Alec Stewart, the Surrey director of cricket, said. “If we had ever had a problem with him, we wouldn’t be welcoming him back. I have a relationship with him as does Graham Ford, our first team coach, who has worked with him since the age of nine.”Yes, we need good cricketers, but we also need good people. We are trying to bring through young players who learn and do the right thing. Jason Roy, for example has learnt so much from KP. He has huge respect, looks up to him and would like to emulate what KP has done as a player.”We’ve gained a very ambitious, very good player. That’s why we’ve brought him back in.”While Pietersen might, in the past, have struggled to motivate himself for the prospect of a Division Two promotion challenge, the incentive of a potential England recall will, in Stewart’s opinion, focus his mind. Pietersen already averages 77.16 in the nine first-class games he has played for the club with some suggesting that, given good luck with the weather, he could become the first man this century – and only the ninth in all – to register 1,000 runs before the end of May.”It’s a good story for us,” Stewart said. “We want to be successful and we want to win things here, but we also have a duty to produce players for England.”Kevin is eligible to play for England. He has set his sights on the Ashes and, if he scores runs for us, then the selectors will have to make a decision.”Stewart went on to suggest that, should Pietersen return to the England team, it might constitute one of the “biggest comeback” stories in sport.”If he ends up playing for England again it is going to be one of the biggest comebacks in sport,” Stewart said. “Just coming back to play for Surrey isn’t right up there, but for England it would be.”Going back to the times of Kerry Packer, players got banned. When they went to play in South Africa they got banned and they came back. So it isn’t as though someone who has been slung out has never come back.”There are examples there of the ECB, going back on decisions. Will they have to this time because of what he is doing? We’ll see.”It is sad that one of England’s finest players has been at loggerheads with the ECB. Both parties are at fault. He has been very good for England and England have been very good for him.”But we got to a situation where they sacked him and that is not right because somehow they have to find some common ground. I am not saying pick him but they have to find common ground where a relationship is recreated whether it is for now or for in 20 years time when, for example, they suddenly might want a dinner for the 2005 Ashes winners. Why would you not want one of the main contributors being there rather than being frightened to invite him?”And we don’t want everyone exactly the same. It would be pretty dull.”Lycamobile supports ‘Chance to Shine Street’ as part of its mission to bring communities together. www.lycamobile.com