Having effortlessly transitioned into acting, Fouzia's debut film swiftly captured global acclaim, earning accolades at the prestigious Cannes Film Festival
Pietersen has requested permission to join the provincial side and is seeking clearance from Cricket South Africa to play two four-day matches from Oct. 7-17, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) said in a statement on Wednesday.
“I’m extremely keen to get as much cricket as possible under my belt before a challenging and exciting winter,” South African-born Pietersen said in the statement.
“My sole focus is to continue playing a leading role for England and joining Natal is the perfect opportunity to prepare in excellent conditions immediately before the Ashes.
“These two matches would enable me to work on my game against the Kookaburra ball in Southern hemisphere conditions which is the ideal preparation for Australia.”
Pietersen, who made his first-class debut for the Durban-based Dolphins during the 1997-98 season before relocating to England, will not be paid for his time with the side, a KZN cricket official, who did not wish to be identified, told Reuters.
“Kevin will play two SuperSport Series matches for us,” the official said. “It is a win-win situation because we are not paying him anything and he gets to prepare for the Ashes.”
Pietersen was dropped by England for the Twenty20 internationals and one-dayers against Pakistan because the selectors felt he would benefit from playing as much cricket as possible.
The 30-year-old right-hander, part of the Twenty20 World Cup-winning side this year and voted player of that tournament, was fined an undisclosed sum this week after posting a message on Twitter, which contained an expletive, announcing he had been dropped.
Pietersen has passed fifty for England just once this season and the last of his 16 test centuries was scored against West Indies in March, 2009.
“We’re very pleased Kevin is seeking to get some more high quality cricket in at a crucial period before the Ashes,” England coach Andy Flower said.
“Kevin’s commitment and desire to work on his batting and play a significant part in a successful England team is unquestioned and this proposed arrangement with Natal, initiated by Kevin himself, further underlines that.”
The Ashes series in Australia starts in November.
Having effortlessly transitioned into acting, Fouzia's debut film swiftly captured global acclaim, earning accolades at the prestigious Cannes Film Festival
Parag, who reached his 50 off 34 balls, cracked 25 runs with three fours and two sixes off the final over bowled by star South Africa paceman Anrich Nortje
Fans were left scratching their heads when Mumbai opted to take Bumrah out of the attack after he bowled the fourth over
With the help of modern equipment, manicured golf courses and elite athletes the scores are getting lower and the game becoming even more captivating
With 10 matches remaining Arsenal lead a three-way title race having won eight successive games
Three separate Israeli strikes on Wednesday, including on a health centre in the border village of Habariyeh, killed 11 civilians
Netanyahu tries to soothe a rift with Biden as he plans to send a government delegation to Washington after earlier cancelling the trip
Among the 24 horses Japan has sent to Dubai is impressive Riyadh Dirt Sprint winner Remake who eyes a Middle East double