Pietersen: Never A Tour Without My Wife

As England’s rather insipid tour to the West Indies draws to an end, the stories surrounding Kevin Pietersen which have dominated headlines for much of the season continue to abound in numbers. The latest is his comment that he will never tour without his wife in the future again.
Liberty X singer Jessica Taylor, whom he married in December 2007, has been Kevin Pietersen’s pillar of strength apparently and the saga surrounding his captaincy has made Pietersen long for home and family.
After comments that bordered on severe frustration broke the news including the fact that he was denied permission to go home to see his wife. After taking on Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Pietersen himself saw a back spasm affect his time on field during the fourth ODI.
Now once again Pietersen claims to be wiser not to talk to the media about his ongoing feelings but has stated that while he remains committed to England notwithstanding the barbs regarding his native South Africa during the England’s tour to the West Indies, he will not spend another eleven months on tour without bringing his wife along.
Clearly the bravado and egoism has given way to a more vulnerable side of Pietersen, that has becomingly increasingly visible and worrisome for the England cricket following. The fragility of a long tour combined with the disappointments coming through controversies, the constant media glare and the lacklustre performances have made even one of the seemingly strongest players wilt, emotionally if not physically.