AFP, Sydney :
Incoming England coach Trevor Bayliss refused to be drawn Thursday on whether he wants Kevin Pietersen in his Ashes squad, while saying he was impressed by the team’s recent performances against New Zealand.
Bayliss, an Australian, was appointed as the new England head coach in May to succeed the sacked Peter Moores, and left Sydney to take up the reins ahead of the first Ashes Test against his home nation in Cardiff on July 8.
He played a straight bat when pressed by Australian broadcaster Fox Sports at the airport on whether he wanted the exiled Pietersen back on the team. “Look, apparently, he’s unavailable for selection, so that’s all I know at this stage,” said Bayliss, a former Sri Lanka coach who was most recently at New South Wales.
“He is a good batter but at this stage he is unavailable, so that’s all I know.”
Pietersen, England’s leading all-time run-scorer across all formats, was told by new England director of cricket Andrew Strauss in May that he was “not part of our plans for the summer”.
Strauss added that there was a “massive trust issue” between the England and Wales Cricket Board and the controversial batsman, despite Pietersen smashing an unbeaten triple century for Surrey just ahead of the announcement.
The first Australian to coach England, Bayliss will spend four days bonding with his new team in camp in Spain.
