Kevin Pietersen has always been a controversial figure. Apart from being one of the most talented and awe-inspiring batsmen of his time, he also had the tendency to say or do things which could land him in trouble. Even after retiring, the penchant he has for stirring the hornet's nest hasn't waned.
On June 8, as hosts England faced Bangladesh in both the teams' third match of the tournament, KP was back to his provocative best. England got off to a good start and went past the 100-mark, without losing a wicket, in just 15 overs. Both Jason Roy and Jonny Bairstow played some exquisite shots to put Bangladesh bowlers in a difficult situation.
This is where Pietersen decided to chip in and make an outrageous comment. He wrote on his Twitter timeline: "Game over already. England will get close to 400 and win by 150! Onto tomorrow's game now, AUS v INDIA. Really looking forward to being at The Oval for that one!"
We don't know whether the former England batsman genuinely believes that the match is already out of Bangladesh's reach or is just saying this to play agent provocateur. Maybe, he is just being funny and trying to egg on Bangladesh fans. Whatever may be the case, writing off Bangladesh with less than 20 overs bowled in the match is a huge mistake.
Not only are the Tigers a very capable side who can fight back from a difficult situations, the new-found confidence displayed by them suggests that even a 350+ total may not be as safe against them as previously thought.
With a batting line-up consisting of aggressive batsmen like Tamim Iqbal and Soumya Sarkar at the top and experienced men like Shakib al-Hasan and Mushfiqur Rahim in the middle order, the Asian side are way better than the pushovers that KP sees them as. But, let's wait and see if Pietersen's prediction comes true.
