Kevin Pietersen has cast a cloud over England's Ashes campaign by claiming cricket's oldest contest may be dead in ten years.
An Achilles injury means Pietersen's participation in the rest of the series is in the balance, with tests later this week expected to determine whether he can play in next week's third npower Test at Edgbaston. But in the wake of all-rounder Andrew Flintoff's decision to retire from Tests at the end of the series to concentrate on limited-overs cricket, Pietersen spoke of his fears for the future of the longest form of the game.
"A few months ago, I was so clear in my thoughts that nothing would affect Test cricket," said Pietersen, who cost Indian Premier League side Bangalore Royal Challengers £1million earlier this year.
"You see that certain players are considering retiring from Test cricket to continue with the Twenty20 form, and then you look at the riches of Twenty20 cricket.
"I would be a fool to say now that Test cricket will be here in ten years' time, because I don't know now."
Andrew Strauss, Pietersen's successor as captain, launched a passionate defence of the five-day game earlier this year after West Indies skipper Chris Gayle had declared that his interests lay in limited-overs cricket.
Yet Strauss now finds himself under fire in Australia after a series of controversial incidents in the opening two Ashes Tests.
The Aussies believed England deliberately tried to waste time to ensure they drew the first Test in Cardiff, while Strauss claimed a catch off opener Phillip Hughes in the tourists' second innings at Lord's that replays suggested may not have carried.
Strauss was convinced he caught the ball cleanly, and England coach Andy Flower said: "I'd be surprised if Andrew Strauss was a hate figure for anyone.
"He believed he caught the ball. If you look at his finger and the way it is bruised, you can see how it has been squashed between ball and ground.
"He is one of the most honest men I've known in cricket. We will keep playing cricket in the same way."
