Durban (S. Africa), Dec. 25 : England’s best bat Kevin Pietersen is getting back to his best form and there are signs that he could deliver something special at his former home ground— Kingsmead in Durban.

The South Africa-born batsman has sought to re-establish himself in international cricket after four months out because of Achilles surgery.

London, Nov 25 : England cricketer Kevin Pietersen and his wife Jessica Taylor are expecting their first child.

Former Liberty X singer Taylor, 29, is due to give birth early next summer.

And a friend of the batsman has revealed Pietersen, 29, is "thrilled" at the prospect.

"They can''t wait to be parents," the Mirror quoted another friend of Pietersen''s as saying. (ANI)

London, Nov. 16 : Former South African cricketer Clive Rice has claimed that England''s best batsman Kevin Pietersen almost gave up playing cricket for surfing.

Rice claims he more than anyone persuaded KP to cut his ties with South Africa and opt for England while in county cricket at Nottinghamshire.

Rice was cricket manager at Notts in2000 and had seen enough of Pietersen to know that a special talent was in danger of being wasted, reports The Mirror.

Johannesburg, Nov 13 : England batsman Kevin Pietersen has said the team would never let victory take over them like it did post-2005 Ashes.

The 2005 success turned out to be the final highlight for members of that team, as injury and poor results took hold.

“Having spoken to the captain and coach, I believe everybody is making strides in the right direction and not following the same pattern as post-2005 Ashes. We want to capitalise on an Ashes victory and not go downhill fast,” The Mirror quoted Pietersen, as saying.

Johannesburg, Nov. 12 : England’s best batsman Kevin Pietersen has suggested that his recovery from Achilles surgery that forced him out of this summer''s Ashes series was mismanaged by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB).

Asked if he felt he had been pushed too hard in the initial rehabilitation, he said: "Yes, there were bits and pieces of that, but it is a long time ago and I want to concentrate on the cricket."

London, Nov 12 : England’s premier batsman Kevin Pietersen insists the seven weeks remaining in 2009 are long enough to prevent it from being a total nightmare of a year.

In January, he was dumped as England captain. Then, in March, Pietersen suffered homesickness during the West Indies tour and, perhaps worst of all, he has been sidelined for four months after an Achilles operation.

His frustration is made worse by his comeback being delayed by two months, The Sun reports.

London, Oct 30 : England batsman Kevin Pietersen, who had an operation on his Achilles and faced the last ball on July 18, is refreshed and will bat for the first time in three months.

Pietersen's hands will be too soft and he will be stiff afterwards but, more significantly, after a year of disillusionment with cricket, he will enjoy himself.

Pietersen accepted that his enforced rest due to injury came as a chance to recharge.

London, Oct 2 : England batsman Kevin Pietersen has revealed that his wife was furious over a comment made by him last year, where he said that hitting 100 runs for the country was better than sex.

Pietersen said that his wife, Jessica Taylor, “ wasn''t happy” about his comment “Centuries don''t come round very often, whereas sex is on tap, isn''t it?”

London, Sep. 22 : Kevin Pietersen is likely to miss England’s tour to South Africa this November, as his chances of becoming match fit are remote.

Team director Andy Flower has conceded that KP may not be named in the England touring squad to be announced after the Champions Trophy.

Pietersen, who has undergone right Achilles tendon surgery, was ruled out of the final three Tests of the Ashes series.

The initial hope was that he would be out of action for only six weeks, but now, his recuperation could take as long as four months.

London, Sep 14 : England batsman Kevin Pietersen has said that he is making a slow and steady recovery from the Achilles tendon surgery and is targeting a return to action during England's South Africa.

"I saw a couple of surgeons during the week and it is very slow at the moment. I''ve got an open wound in my leg and I''m only truly hoping to get back in time for the tour to South Africa," The Mirror quoted Pietersen, as saying.

London, Sep. 9 : England batsman Kevin Pietersen will not be available for the Bangalore Royal Challengers in the upcoming Twenty20 Champions League.

The big-hitting batsman, 29, is currently recovering from surgery on his Achilles after missing out on the last three Ashes Tests.

That knock has also ruled him out of the current one-dayers with Australia, as well as the upcoming Champions Trophy in South Africa.

The Champions League, which features domestic Twenty20 teams from around the globe, runs from October 8 to October 23, The Sun reports. (ANI)

London, Aug. 18 : Batsman Kevin Pietersen could come into instant conflict with his England bosses when he returns from injury because of his commitments to the Indian Premier League (IPL).

Though KP will be out for another two months after being omitted from England''s one-day squads to face Australia as well as the Champions Trophy in South Africa, he may be fit to play for Bangalore in the Twenty20 Champions League in India in October.

England''s priority is KP is fit for the winter tour to South Africa. (ANI)

London, Aug. 9 : England needs a hero in the form of Ian Botham to make something of the fourth Ashes Test, which they are sight of losing inside three days, said injured batsman Kevin Pietersen.

London, July 31 : Injured England batsman Kevin Pietersen has described his current spell on the sidelines as the middle marker in his playing career, and said that he is just taking a break to get fully fit for the next stage.

The 29 year-old, who had a surgery on his Achilles tendon, also rubbished reports of following Andrew Flintoff into Test cricket retirement and came to Edgbaston to cheer his team-mates.

London, July 25 : The England and Wales Cricket Board has denied reports that their star batsman Kevin Pietersen had aggravated his achilles injury while playing for Bangalore Royal Challengers in the Indian Premier League in South Africa earlier this year.

The ECB also denied that they had prescribed any training programme for Pietersen, as alleged by Bangalore Royal Challengers assistant coach and physiotherapist Evan Speechly.

London, July 23 : The England team's middle order has become a bit vulnerable and pressure has increased on other players to perform after star batsman Kevin Pietersen was ruled out of the Ashes series due to injury.

Pietersen, who had been troubled by the injury for the past six months, had surgery on Wednesday after seeing a specialist from Sweden and will be out of cricket for at least six weeks.

London, July 13 : Cricket star Kevin Pietersen's wife Jessica Taylor is looking forward to spending the summer with her husband, after having spent 11 weeks apart.

The couple have vowed never spend time apart again, after they were separated for nearly three months as Jessica competed in `Dancing On Ice' earlier this year, while Kevin was playing a Test series in the West Indies.

While thousands of miles apart, the duo kept in touch via Skype.

Cardiff, July 9 : England batsman Kevin Pietersen brushed off his freak sweep dismissal on the opening day of the Ashes series, and said that England can win the first test match at Cardiff.

"We mean business this time. We would definitely have taken that score because Australia have dominated the first day of our two previous Ashes series" The Mirror quoted Pietersen, as saying.

Cardiff (Wales), July 7 : With a day to go before the first Ashes Test against Australia to be played here, explosive batsman, and 2005 Ashes hero Kevin Pietersen has said that England can win the Test and the series even if he has a bad run.

London, June 30 : England batsman Kevin Pietersen has said that there is a good chance that Australia's batters will come up against reverse swing during the Ashes series.

The English seamers turned Australian batsmen''s heads to mush and legs to lead in their shock 2-1 series win in 2005.