England cricket could find itself in the doldrums with a report claiming that captain Kevin Pietersen is threatening to resign over the non-inclusion of former skipper Michael Vaughan in the squad for this month's tour of the West Indies.
The media in London said Pietersen felt betrayed by coach Peter Moores following the treatment meted out to Vaughan, whom the skipper had wanted for the four-Test tour of the West Indies.
Petersen, it was reported, and had sought an emergency meeting with ECB chairman Giles Clarke on the issue.
The selectors, along with Moores, retained Ian Bell and Owais Shah in the squad much to the fury of Pietersen, who sees this as the final straw in a relationship with the coach that has been fractious at best since he took over.
According to the Daily Mail, Pietersen will tell Clarke that either Moores goes or he quits.
"It will place bombastic chairman Clarke in a highly difficult position as he has to choose between his powerful captain and the coach regarded so highly at the ECB," the report said.
Pietersen had asked for Vaughan's inclusion and had left on his holiday to Africa believing he would have his way but Moores won over the selectors at the meeting.
Pietersen had assured Vaughan, his predecessor as captain, that he had his full support. He sees Vaughan's presence as crucial to England's attempt to win the Ashes next summer.
"England now risk totally alienating their best player, the man who showed statesmanlike leadership in a situation of genuine crisis, unless Clarke axes Moores," the report said.
"The situation is such that the pair will surely not be able to work together again and, while (Hugh) Morris's support for Moores should not be underestimated, the ECB would be foolhardy in the extreme if they went against their captain," it added.
Moores, boosted by the support of ECB managing director Morris, spoke against Vaughan at a highly charged selection committee meeting on Monday.
Since accepting the captaincy last August, Pietersen has not had the best of relationship with Moores. The captain was vocal against what he saw as Moores' obsession with physical training before the tour of India.
Vaughan also had no secret of his dislike for Moores during their brief spell together and the former captain has privately told friends that he intends to make it perfectly clear what he thinks of Moores when he writes his autobiography at the conclusion of his career.
