"I played in an era when only 4 or 5 of us were playing IPL cricket and we were all frustrated sat in England teams" - Kevin Pietersen

Kevin Pietersen believes if The Hundred had started earlier, England would have been a much better white-ball team by now. Pietersen highlighted how during his playing days there were only three or four English players playing in the IPL. The former batsman also suggested that he was often left frustrated by the England team management's decision to pick conservative batters.

England had a disastrous 2015 World Cup campaign as they lost to Pakistan, Sri Lanka, New Zealand, Australia and Bangladesh. They failed to even clear the group stage hurdle.

But since then, under the captaincy of Eoin Morgan, England's white-ball team have been known to play an aggressive brand of cricket.

Pietersen suggested that if more English players had played in the IPL in the past, England would have adapted to the new ways much quicker.

Pietersen said in an interaction with the Daily Mail:

"One hundred per cent (if England would have been more successful if The Hundred had come earlier). I played in an era when only four or five of us were playing IPL cricket and we were all frustrated sat in England teams, asking, "What on earth are we doing blocking the ball? Why are we picking players who block the ball?" Now you’ve got an England team full of IPL stars who get dropped if they block it. It’s a complete change in mindset."

What are we describing here? 🤫 pic.twitter.com/6Z3qQHYqM2

— The Hundred (@thehundred) July 18, 2021

The inaugural edition of The Hundred starts tomorrow, with the men's edition set to begin on July 22nd.

---

Kevin Pietersen wants the England cricket board to rope in Indian male cricketers for The Hundred

🇮🇳#TeamIndia pic.twitter.com/8dOk8uYM7W

— BCCI (@BCCI) July 16, 2021

The former England batsman is hoping that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) can work out a way to include male Indian cricketers in The Hundred in the near future.

Dinesh Karthik recently admitted that he would be open to playing in The Hundred. However, with current rules set in place by the BCCI, the male Indian cricketers who are still vying for spots in the national team or want to carry on playing domestic cricket have predominantly stayed away from foreign leagues.

Kevin Pietersen realizes the amount of fan following The Hundred would get if Indian male players joined the tournament. He said:

"The male Indian players make the TV numbers shoot through the roof, and they also make the crowds. They’re so well supported. Politically, if the two boards are on that level and conversations are happening then that would be a huge coup for English cricket."

The BCCI has given NOC to five women cricketers to participate in the inaugural season of The Hundred. Shafali Verma, Harmanpreet Kaur, Jemimah Rodrigues, Smriti Mandhana and Deepti Sharma are set to feature in the women's edition of the competition.

🙌 We're getting closer! 🙌 Which matches are you coming to? pic.twitter.com/YzZ6MX1mo7

— The Hundred (@thehundred) July 17, 2021