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Young left-arm spinner removes Pietersen

Kevin Pietersen is unlikely to spend much time in the Surrey dressing room but faces the prospect of some serious ribbing after falling to a team-mate

ESPNcricinfo staff
11-May-2011
Kevin Pietersen reached 30 before edging to slip  •  PA Photos

Kevin Pietersen reached 30 before edging to slip  •  PA Photos

Kevin Pietersen is unlikely to spend much time in the Surrey dressing room this summer, but faces the prospect of some serious ribbing after falling to a team-mate who was playing for Cambridge MCCU during his comeback match at Fenner's. To add further spark to Pietersen's dismissal the bowler who had him caught at slip, Zafar Ansari, is a left-arm spinner.
Ansari, 19, is on the Surrey staff and highly rated by the coaching team but on this occasion was playing against the county for his university team. He had one previous first-class wicket to his name so Pietersen was a notable second scalp when he fell shortly after lunch.
Pietersen, who was playing his first match since leaving the World Cup with a hernia in March, came to the crease in the 16th over. Unsurprisingly after a lengthy lay-off his innings had scratchy moments but he also struck two straight sixes until he was well caught by Chris Park.
Ansari went on to claim an impressive 5 for 33 before Pietersen, captaining what is effectively a Surrey second XI, declared at 234 for 9.
After a second innings in this game Pietersen will have a County Championship match against Essex at Whitgift School next to week to increase his preparation ahead of the first Test against Sri Lanka at the end of the month. If Pietersen feels he needs extra batting, and the ECB release him to play, Surrey have a CB40 match against Scotland in Edinburgh on Sunday and another against Hampshire on May 22.