BRISBANE: England batsman Kevin Pietersen on said on Monday that he bore no grudge with Australia’s Shane Warne after the pair clashed during the Ashes opener at the Gabba in Brisbane.
Pietersen yelled an obscenity at Warne after the Australian leg-spinner hurled the ball at his head during a tense period of play on Day Four of the first Test on Sunday.
Pietersen was forced to swat the ball away with his bat. The confrontation followed criticism that the two players, who are team-mates with English county Hampshire, were too friendly for members of opposing Ashes sides.
The 26-year-old right-hander told ABC radio after England lost the Test by 277 runs that the argument with Warne was “just playing nice, hard cricket” and would not affect their off-field relationship.
“What happens on the field stays on the field, it’s got nothing to do with what happens off the field,” South African-born Pietersen said.
Australian captain Ricky Ponting, who was receiving treatment for a strained back at the time of the confrontation, said both fans and players would be relish the prospect of more Warne and Pietersen showdowns during the Ashes.
“Going on yesterday it looks like it will be an on-going battle,” he said. “I wasn’t out there amongst it yesterday, it would have been nice to listen in to what was being said, I also saw it on television. They are two very feisty and competitive players, so there’s no doubt that Shane will be bowling a lot to Kevin as the series go on.”
The clash came during Pietersen’s 153-run fourth-wicket stand with Paul Collingwood, virtually the only period England was on top during the match.
Pietersen said the period of dominance allowed England to salvage some pride after a desperate performance early in the match.
“We needed to go out there in the second innings and show some dedication,” he said. “We started off really badly in the first three days so we had to go at it and show some determination, some sort of grit and commitment.”
He said England would be looking to display similar fighting qualities from the start of the Adelaide Test beginning on Friday.
