South African-born cricketer Kevin Pietersen – who left the country to play for England – has urged citizens to “vote for change” in the upcoming elections.
The retired star also commented how his country of birth had “reached rock bottom.”
Kevin, who was born to an Afrikaaner father and a British mother, left SA at the age of 19. After four years of residency, he qualified to play for England, where he eventually became captain of the national team.
South Africans will take to the polls on Wednesday, 29 May, in the general election.
‘VOTE FOR CHANGE’
In a tweet, Kevin Pietersen – like many other public figures – encouraged South Africans to vote in the elections on 29 May.
He tweeted: “I’m hoping that the people of South Africa vote for change in that beautiful country.
He continued: “It should be the GREATEST country on the planet. It has EVERYTHING for it to be the best. It’s reached rock bottom and this week is so important”.
Kevin did not reveal whether he had cast his vote during the special voter weekend last week for South Africans living abroad.
Images via X:
@claysonmonyela
WHY DID KEVIN PIETERSEN LEAVE SOUTH AFRICA?
Kevin Petersen was born in Pietermaritzburg in KwaZulu-Natal in 1980. He attended the Maritzburg College and was later selected to play for Natal’s B team in 1997 at the age of 17
However, in his 2007 autobiography Crossing The Boundary, Kevin revealed the real reason he left SA.
An extract of the book, as published by DailyMail, reads: “I was dropped because the quota system was brought into South African cricket to positively discriminate in favour of ‘players of colour’ and to fast-track the racial integration of cricket in the country.
He continued: “To me, every single person in this world needs to be treated exactly the same. And that should have included me, as a promising 20-year-old cricketer. If you do well, you should play on merit. That goes for any person of any colour. It was heartbreaking.
Despite feeling forced to leave his homeland, Kevin added that “it turned out it was the best thing that could have happened.”
Kevin Pietersen’s family—including three siblings—still lives in SA, even though he considers England “home.”
His mother, Penny, told the Mirror that she was disappointed at the “hostile reception” from South Africans toward her son in his early playing days.
She said: “That’s sad. People should be happy for someone else’s success.
“Kevin took the initiative and had the courage to go overseas and realise his dream. And that’s something you can’t take away from him.”
