Former England captain Kevin Pietersen’s scathing criticism of the England team’s approach against Australia in the ongoing second Ashes 2023 Test has sparked mixed reactions. While some agree with Pietersen’s assessment of England’s performance, others believe his comments were too harsh.
One former teammate of Pietersen, Steve Harmison, has come to the defense of the England team, suggesting that Pietersen should be more mindful of his words. Speaking on talkSPORT, Harmison expressed his disagreement with Pietersen’s criticism, stating that the team has had only a few bad days in the past year.
Harmison said, “I don’t think it was justified. I think this team has had one or two bad days in 12-13 months. I think some of the stuff that they were having a go at them (for), too matey, I think there’s a time and a place.”
Notably, Pietersen had labeled England’s performance on Day 1 as “shambolic” and expressed his hope that the coaching staff gave the players a strong reprimand in the dressing room. Despite Australia finishing with a first innings total of 416, thanks to a century from Steve Smith, England managed to stage a late comeback on the first day.
While Harmison acknowledged Pietersen’s right to have an opinion, he also noted that his forceful and often unwarranted comments were not always well-received. Harmison highlighted the strained relationships Pietersen had with some teammates, particularly former captain Andrew Strauss, suggesting that Pietersen’s presence in the dressing room was not always positive.
“I’m not going to knock Kevin for having his opinion – he’s always had it. He was always forceful with it, it wasn’t always warranted, it wasn’t always best received. I’m sure it wasn’t best received in the England dressing room (ahead of day two), it certainly wasn’t best received by the England dressing room when we were in it! But a few of us could say to Kevin, in no uncertain terms, to shut up,” added Harmison.