Injured Pietersen out of Champions Trophy

England batsman Kevin Pietersen will miss the Champions Trophy due to complications following surgery on a chronic Achilles tendon injury.

Pietersen had hoped to return in the September 22-October 5 tournament in South Africa, but his recovery was set back last week when he developed an infection in some scar tissue.

As well as missing the Champions Trophy, he won't feature in the one-day series or Twenty20 matches against Australia.

But Andrew Flintoff, who is retiring from Test cricket next week when the Ashes series concludes, was selected Monday in all three limited-overs squads.

With Pietersen ruled out, selectors called up uncapped Kent batsman Joe Denly.

"Joe Denly has impressed the selectors for a while with some excellent performances in one-day cricket," national selector Geoff Miller said. "With Kevin Pietersen unavailable through injury, this is an excellent opportunity for Joe to step up to the next level and show what he is capable of."

Denly will travel with England to Belfast for a one-day international against Ireland on Aug. 27, just three days after the fifth and final Ashes Test against Australia at The Oval is scheduled to finish.

That team will be captained by Paul Collingwood, in the absence of the rested Andrew Strauss. The 15 players chosen to face Australia in two Twenty20 internationals at Old Trafford will also be rested against Ireland.

Strauss will return for the seven ODIs against Australia in September and the Champions Trophy.

"Strauss has led the side extremely well in both forms of cricket this summer," Miller said. "But the selectors felt it would be beneficial for him to have a short break from international cricket following the conclusion of the Ashes Test series, and Paul Collingwood will lead the side in Ireland and in the international Twenty20s."

Squad for one-day series against Australia and Champions Trophy:

Andrew Strauss (captain), James Anderson, Ravi Bopara, Tim Bresnan, Stuart Broad, Paul Collingwood, Joe Denly, Andrew Flintoff, Eoin Morgan, Matt Prior, Adil Rashid, Owais Shah, Ryan Sidebotton, Graeme Swann, Luke Wright.

Squad for Twenty20 series against Australia:

Paul Collingwood (captain), James Anderson, Ravi Bopara, Tim Bresnan, Stuart Broad, Joe Denly, Andrew Flintoff, Eoin Morgan, Matt Prior, Adil Rashid, Owais Shah, Ryan Sidebotton, Graeme Swann, Jonathan Trott, Luke Wright.

Squad for One-Day International against Ireland:

Paul Collingwood (captain), James Anderson, Ravi Bopara, Tim Bresnan, Stuart Broad, Joe Denly, Andrew Flintoff, Eoin Morgan, Matt Prior, Adil Rashid, Owais Shah, Ryan Sidebotton, Graeme Swann, Luke Wright.

Source: NDTV

Aussies get it in writing: English cricketers 'lazy'

London: English cricketers are lazy, crave the friendship of rival players and start making excuses when things go wrong, the Daily Telegraph has reported, quoting an Australian Ashes dossier.

The document, containing the thoughts of Somerset captain and former Aussie opener Justine Langer, was handed to the entire Australian squad before the first Test of the current Ashes series against England, the newspaper said.

The document says English cricketers are "lazy", "shallow" and "flat" - players who "love being comfortable".

Fast bowler James Anderson is described as "a bit of a pussy" if things do not go his way and skipper Andrew Strauss as too "conservative".

"English players rarely believe in themselves," says Langer.

"Many of them stare a lot and chat a lot but this is very shallow. They will retreat very quickly. Aggressive batting, running and body language will soon have them staring at their bootlaces rather than in the eyes of their opponent--it is just how they are built."

"Because of the way they are programmed, they will be up when things are going well, but they will taper off very quickly if you wear them down."

"Because they play so much cricket, as soon as it gets a bit hard you just have to watch their body language and see how flat and lazy they get," says Langer.

"This is also a time when most of them make all sorts of excuses and start looking around to point the finger at everyone else--it is a classic English trait from my experience."

The Daily Telegraph said the document warns the current Australian side not to be too friendly with the England team, as they did in 2005 when England won the biennial series 2-1.

"They (English cricketers) like being friendly and 'matey' because it makes them feel comfortable," Langer says.

Source: IBN Live