5 famous players whose careers ended because of controversies

#2 Kevin Pietersen

Kevin Pietersen

Kevin Pietersen, who played 104 Tests and 136 ODIs in an international career that spanned from 2004 to 2014, is one of the best players to have ever donned an England shirt.

Although he was also involved in his fair share of colorful off-field incidents, it was Pietersen’s batting that was more often in the headlines between 2004 and 2011. During this period, he enraptured cricket fans with his brilliant batting.

“KP”, as he is known, was an aggressive batsman who was not afraid to take bowlers on. In particular, he was a superb player against spin bowling.

Using these attributes, Pietersen helped win several matches for England.

But unfortunately, his last three years in international cricket were marred by a frosty relationship with the English Cricket Board (ECB).

The fallout started in August 2012, when Pietersen sent “provocative” messages to the South African team (his captain Andrew Strauss and coach Andy Flower were mentioned in the texts). He was consequently dropped from the side for the next Test.

After this incident, his international career seemed to be in tatters and Pietersen was duly omitted from the squad to tour the West Indies in early 2014. England moved on from the batsman because, according to then-managing director of England cricket Paul Newton, KP had looked disengaged in previous matches and soured the team atmosphere.