{"id":2661,"date":"2026-04-23T21:50:23","date_gmt":"2026-04-23T21:50:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/disport.com.ng\/?p=2661"},"modified":"2026-04-23T21:50:23","modified_gmt":"2026-04-23T21:50:23","slug":"kevin-pietersen-reignites-feud-with-england-legend-alastair-cook-he-has-no-idea","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/disport.com.ng\/?p=2661","title":{"rendered":"Kevin Pietersen reignites feud with England legend Alastair Cook &#8211; &#8216;He has no idea&#8217;"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div id=\"article-body\">\n<h2 class=\"LeadText_lead-text__wd_PA __className_7c26c0\" data-testid=\"leadtext\">The feud between Kevin Pietersen and Alastair Cook has resurfaced after the pair took different stances on whether England&#8217;s Jacob Bethell should still be at the IPL<\/h2>\n<p><button type=\"button\" class=\"SlideViewerButton_slide-viewer-button__BDJoG\" aria-label=\"Open image viewer\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\" aria-controls=\"image-lightbox\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"ImageEmbed_image-embed__0T8WX ImageEmbed_image-lead__Ti3qQ\" data-testid=\"leadimage\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-articleid=\"37062186\">\n<div class=\"ImageEmbed_image-container__2AIQm\">\n<figure class=\"Figure_figure__Uce4f\" style=\"--figure-aspect-ratio:1.5\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA - DECEMBER 04:  Kevin Pietersen speaks with England captain Alastair Cook during an England Nets Session at Adelaide Oval on December 4, 2013 in Adelaide, Australia. (Photo by Gareth Copley\/Getty Images)\" loading=\"eager\" sizes=\"(max-width: 508px) 508px, (max-width: 615px) 615px, 1200px\" src=\"https:\/\/i2-prod.mirror.co.uk\/article37062186.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s1200f\/1_GettyImages-453377985.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i2-prod.mirror.co.uk\/article37062186.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s508\/1_GettyImages-453377985.jpg 508w, https:\/\/i2-prod.mirror.co.uk\/article37062186.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s615\/1_GettyImages-453377985.jpg 615w, https:\/\/i2-prod.mirror.co.uk\/article37062186.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s1200f\/1_GettyImages-453377985.jpg 1200w\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\"ImageCaption_caption__j7HRu\" data-testid=\"image-caption\">\n<p aria-label=\"Kevin Pietersen and Alastair Cook fell out in 2014\" class=\"ImageCaption_caption-title__ccyQU\" data-testid=\"caption-title\">Kevin Pietersen and Alastair Cook fell out in 2014<cite aria-label=\"Image: Gareth Copley\/Getty Images\" class=\"ImageCaption_caption-credit__wlx1W\" data-testid=\"caption-credit\">(Image: Gareth Copley\/Getty Images)<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<p><\/button><\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Kevin Pietersen has reignited his long-running feud with Alastair Cook<!-- --> after his ex-team-mate criticised <!-- -->England star Jacob Bethell&#8217;s decision to remain in the <!-- -->Indian Premier League. Bethell, who was the silver lining in <!-- -->England&#8217;s crushing 4-1 loss to <!-- -->Australia in the <!-- -->Ashes, has been unused by Royal Challengers Bengaluru after six matches.<!-- --><\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Cook urged the 22-year-old to come home and play for Warwickshire in the County Championship instead of &#8216;sitting on his a*** at the IPL not doing anything&#8217;. England begin their three-match series against New Zealand on June 4, just five days after this year&#8217;s IPL final which RCB stand a good chance of making.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">But Pietersen, who was banished from the England set-up in 2014 when Cook was captain, is of a different opinion. &#8220;Alastair Cook has absolutely NO IDEA what it&#8217;s like to be in the IPL,&#8221; Pietersen wrote on X.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">&#8220;What it&#8217;s like to always be around the best players in the world. So his opinion on Jacob Bethell doesn&#8217;t matter at all. Stay in India, Jacob. I know, even though you&#8217;re not playing, you&#8217;re learning and will be a way better player.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\"><strong class=\"Strong_strong__e2x35\">JOIN US ON FACEBOOK! <\/strong><a aria-label=\"\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/MirrorSport#\" rel=\"nofollow\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"\"><strong class=\"Strong_strong__e2x35\"><u>All the best sports news and much more on our dedicated Facebook page<\/u><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p><span data-testid=\"readmore\" class=\"ReadMore_readmore-prefix__xS44r __className_82c8df\">READ MORE<!-- -->: <span class=\"ReadMore_readmore-link__eF9pN\">England cricket tickets for 2026 Test Series and ODIs with VIP hospitality from \u00a339<\/span><\/span><span data-testid=\"readmore\" class=\"ReadMore_readmore-prefix__xS44r __className_82c8df\">READ MORE<!-- -->: <span class=\"ReadMore_readmore-link__eF9pN\">Jude Bellingham buys stake in cricket team as Real Madrid star joins The Hundred<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Pietersen then wrote in a separate post: &#8220;If county cricket was as strong as it was in the late 90s and early 2000s, I&#8217;d also want Bethell back playing it now.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">&#8220;But, it&#8217;s NOT! It&#8217;ll benefit England more by him being in India and he&#8217;s already shown that.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Pietersen infamously fell out with Cook over England&#8217;s decision to drop him from the Test side. Two years prior, the South African-born batsman had been suspended for a match against his birth country after sending texts to the opposition criticising then-England captain Andrew Strauss.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\"><strong class=\"Strong_strong__e2x35\">Should Jacob Bethell withdraw from the IPL? Have your say in the comments section.<\/strong><\/p>\n<div data-testid=\"image-group\"><button type=\"button\" class=\"SlideViewerButton_slide-viewer-button__BDJoG\" aria-label=\"Open image viewer\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\" aria-controls=\"image-lightbox\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"ImageEmbed_image-embed__0T8WX false\" data-testid=\"imageembed-37062188\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-articleid=\"37062188\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"image\">\n<div class=\"ImageEmbed_image-container__2AIQm\">\n<figure class=\"Figure_figure__Uce4f\" style=\"--figure-aspect-ratio:1.5\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"England's Jacob Bethell celebrates after scoring a century (100 runs) during the 2026 ICC Men's T20 Cricket World Cup semi-final match between India and England at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on March 5, 2026. (Photo by Punit PARANJPE\/AFP via Getty Images)\" loading=\"lazy\" sizes=\"(max-width: 458px) 458px, (max-width: 615px) 615px, 1200px\" src=\"https:\/\/i2-prod.mirror.co.uk\/article37062188.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s1200e\/0_GettyImages-2264298707.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i2-prod.mirror.co.uk\/article37062188.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s458b\/0_GettyImages-2264298707.jpg 458w, https:\/\/i2-prod.mirror.co.uk\/article37062188.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s615b\/0_GettyImages-2264298707.jpg 615w, https:\/\/i2-prod.mirror.co.uk\/article37062188.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s1200e\/0_GettyImages-2264298707.jpg 1200w\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\"ImageCaption_caption__j7HRu\" data-testid=\"image-caption\">\n<p aria-label=\"Jacob Bethell hasn't played for Royal Challengers Bengaluru after six matches\" class=\"ImageCaption_caption-title__ccyQU\" data-testid=\"caption-title\">Jacob Bethell hasn&#8217;t played for Royal Challengers Bengaluru after six matches<cite aria-label=\"Image: Punit PARANJPE\/AFP via Getty Images\" class=\"ImageCaption_caption-credit__wlx1W\" data-testid=\"caption-credit\">(Image: Punit PARANJPE\/AFP via Getty Images)<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<p><\/button><\/div>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Cook admitted in 2018 that he regretted the handling of Pietersen&#8217;s axe. &#8220;It could have been handled differently,&#8221; Cook said. &#8220;The moment Andrew Strauss came on board (as a selector) and said he was making the decision (to leave Pietersen out) was the best thing that could have happened for me.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">&#8220;I do have regrets over it. The Sri Lankan series that year (which England lost) and Lord&#8217;s (defeat in the first Test against India later that summer in 2014), that was the lowest I was.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">&#8220;It was really tough but I didn&#8217;t throw the towel in. I still thought I was the best man for the job and the right one to be captain at that time. But it wasn&#8217;t easy. I could have taken the easy option but I didn&#8217;t. And I got the reward &#8211; no, that sounds selfish, the team did &#8211; of winning the 2015 Ashes. That was brilliant.&#8221;<\/p>\n<div data-testid=\"image-group\"><button type=\"button\" class=\"SlideViewerButton_slide-viewer-button__BDJoG\" aria-label=\"Open image viewer\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\" aria-controls=\"image-lightbox\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"ImageEmbed_image-embed__0T8WX false\" data-testid=\"imageembed-37062187\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-articleid=\"37062187\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"image\">\n<div class=\"ImageEmbed_image-container__2AIQm\">\n<figure class=\"Figure_figure__Uce4f\" style=\"--figure-aspect-ratio:1.51\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"England's captain Alastair Cook (L) and Kevin Pietersen leave the ground at the end of day three of the first Ashes cricket Test match between England and Australia at the Gabba Cricket Ground in Brisbane on November 23, 2013.  IMAGE RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE - STRICTLY NO COMMERCIAL USE AFP PHOTO\/Saeed KHAN (Photo credit should read SAEED KHAN\/AFP via Getty Images)\" loading=\"lazy\" sizes=\"(max-width: 458px) 458px, (max-width: 615px) 615px, 1200px\" src=\"https:\/\/i2-prod.mirror.co.uk\/article37062187.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s1200e\/0_GettyImages-451523643.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i2-prod.mirror.co.uk\/article37062187.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s458b\/0_GettyImages-451523643.jpg 458w, https:\/\/i2-prod.mirror.co.uk\/article37062187.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s615b\/0_GettyImages-451523643.jpg 615w, https:\/\/i2-prod.mirror.co.uk\/article37062187.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s1200e\/0_GettyImages-451523643.jpg 1200w\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\"ImageCaption_caption__j7HRu\" data-testid=\"image-caption\">\n<p aria-label=\"Alastair Cook was England's captain when Kevin Pietersen was axed\" class=\"ImageCaption_caption-title__ccyQU\" data-testid=\"caption-title\">Alastair Cook was England&#8217;s captain when Kevin Pietersen was axed<cite aria-label=\"Image: SAEED KHAN\/AFP via Getty Images\" class=\"ImageCaption_caption-credit__wlx1W\" data-testid=\"caption-credit\">(Image: SAEED KHAN\/AFP via Getty Images)<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<p><\/button><\/div>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">As for Bethell, he only played twice for RCB in last year&#8217;s IPL and confessed that he came back to England for the summer &#8216;undercooked&#8217;. Nevertheless, the 22-year-old is adamant that staying in India again is what&#8217;s best for him.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">&#8220;I firmly believe that this is the thing for me to be doing right now,&#8221; Bethell told the <a aria-label=\"Sky Cricket podcastLink opens in a new tab.\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.skysports.com\/cricket\/news\/12123\/13534972\/jacob-bethell-responds-to-ipl-criticism-as-sir-alastair-cook-calls-for-england-star-to-consider-return-to-county-cricket-with-warwickshire\" rel=\"nofollow\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"_blank\">Sky Cricket podcast<\/a>. &#8220;I feel better now than I was a month ago after the World Cup, just from getting time around the guys over here and the pure standard of cricket in India and the IPL.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">&#8220;Every nets session, you&#8217;ve got hundreds of eyes on you, be it your coaches or the other players who are also looking at you, going, &#8216;Is this guy good? Is he not?&#8217; You&#8217;ve got the people in the crowd with their phones on. You get exposed to a lot of stuff.&#8221;<\/p>\n<div class=\"AffiliateContentsEmbed_affiliate-contents-container__oTiet\" data-testid=\"affiliate-contents-embed\">\n<div data-testid=\"affiliate-content\" class=\"AffiliateContent_affiliate-content-container__10EX_ affiliate-content\">\n<p>Sky Sports, HBO Max, Netflix and Disney+ with Ultimate TV package<\/p>\n<div class=\"AffiliateDisclaimer_affiliate-disclaimer__dG5ST\">\n<div class=\"AffiliateDisclaimer_affiliate-text__8nmDa\">This article contains affiliate links, we will receive a commission on any sales we generate from it. Learn more<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"AffiliateContent_section-container__JMDzM AffiliateContent_content-details__U6C2M AffiliateContent_has-content-img___LY95\">\n<div class=\"AffiliateContent_section-content__QCkL9\">\n<div class=\"AffiliateContent_content-image__FxPNL\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Content Image\" fetchpriority=\"auto\" src=\"https:\/\/i2-prod.mirror.co.uk\/article33404045.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s510b\/0_Sky-Factbox.jpg\"\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"AffiliateContent_section-container__JMDzM\">\n<div id=\"product-description\" class=\"AffiliateContent_section-content__QCkL9\">\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Sky has upgraded its Ultimate TV and Sky Sports bundle to now include HBO Max, Netflix, Disney+, discovery+ and Hayu, as well as 135 channels and full Sky coverage of the Premier League and EFL.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Sky broadcasts more than 1,400 live matches across the Premier League, EFL and more with at least 215 live from the top flight alongside <!-- -->Formula 1, darts and golf.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The feud between Kevin Pietersen and Alastair Cook has resurfaced after the pair took different<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2662,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"pagelayer_contact_templates":[],"_pagelayer_content":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2661","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-football"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/disport.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2661","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/disport.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/disport.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/disport.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/disport.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2661"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/disport.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2661\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/disport.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2662"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/disport.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2661"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/disport.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2661"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/disport.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2661"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}