Kevin Pietersen didn't replace Graham Thorpe in 2005 Ashes, Ian Bell did: Michael Vaughan

Former England captain Michael Vaughan recently recalled a selection dilemma from the 2005 Ashes series. The 2005 Ashes is widely acknowledged as one of the most remarkable and closely-fought Test battles in cricketing folklore. Under the leadership of Michael Vaughan and Kevin Pietersen’s batting heroics, England defied all odds to defeat a rampaging Australian unit, who were ranked No. 1 in the ICC Test rankings at the time. The hosts' 2-1 win over Ricky Ponting and co meant that England had regained the urn for the first time since the 1986-87 Australian summer.

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Michael Vaughan settles Kevin Pietersen and Graham Thorpe 2005 Ashes selection dilemma

Then-rising star Kevin Pietersen made his Test debut through the 2005 Ashes series. At the time, England Head Selector David Graveney said that dropping Graham Thorpe in favour of Kevin Pietersen was "the most difficult decision” he ever took as a selector. However, while speaking on the Yorkshire Cricket: Covers Off Podcast, Michael Vaughan revealed that it was Ian Bell who replaced the 100-Test veteran and not Kevin Pietersen.

The cricketer-turned-commentator revealed that he wanted to have a younger team against “absolute legends” like Shane Warne and Glenn McGrath. He believed in having players who “didn’t have scars” from previous Ashes battles by facing Shane Warne and co. Michael Vaughan stated that picking Kevin Pietersen was an obvious choice for him because of his imperious ODI record prior to the 2005 Ashes. He revealed that the real selection predicament actually occurred when they were left to choose between Graham Thorpe, a veteran of 100 Test matches and Ian Bell who was only 23 at the time.

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Chronicling 2005 Ashes and Kevin Pietersen’s performance

Michael Vaughan’s decision to stick with Kevin Pietersen across five matches paid off as the attacking batsman emerged as the leading run-scorer in the series with 473 runs. He defied Australian bowlers throughout the 2005 biennial event and also scored a counter-attacking 158 in the fifth Test when the rest of the English batsmen crumbled to Shane Warne’s wily spell of 6-124. Despite Kevin Pietersen’s heroics with the bat and Shane Warne’s 40 wickets, dynamic all-rounder Andrew Flintoff was awarded the Compton–Miller Medal for his 402-run tally and 24-wicket series haul.

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Image credits: ICC Twitter