KP ends limited-overs England career

England star Kevin Pietersen has called time on playing limited-overs international cricket and will now focus on Test matches.

The 31-year-old made his international debut in 2004 and has played 127 one-day games and 36 Twenty20 matches for England and is the only England man to pass 1,000 Twenty20 runs. The England and Wales Cricket Board has stated that centrally-contracted players need to be available for all limited-overs cricket or none of it, with that seemingly forcing Pietersen into his shock retirement from one-day and Twenty20 internationals. It means England must defend their World Twenty20 title in Sri Lanka later this year without Pietersen and the batsman admits he would have liked to have played some part in that tournament. Pietersen said: "With the intensity of the international schedule and the increasing demands on my body, approaching 32, I think it is the right time to step aside and let the next generation of players come through to gain experience for the ICC World Cup in 2015." "I am immensely proud of my achievements in the one-day game, and still wish to be considered for selection for England in Test cricket," he added. "For the record, were the selection criteria not in place, I would have readily played for England in the upcoming ICC World Twenty20."