England limited overs coach Ashley Giles has described Kevin Pietersen as a "million-pound asset" after naming him in his provisional 30-man World Twenty20 squad.
The batsman's international future has come under serious speculation in the wake of the 5-0 Ashes whitewash, with reports suggesting that team director Andy Flower was ready to axe the 33-year-old as he looked to start a new era.
However, Giles revealed on Wednesday that there was no thought of leaving Pietersen out of the Twenty20 squad - a decision that Flower was party to.
"No. There was no discussion about leaving Kevin out," Giles said. "He's another million-pound asset at least, he might be worth a bit more than that.
"He's a fantastic player and he's shown that in T20 cricket. Kev has been a fantastic player for England for many years."
Pietersen's inclusion does not fully confirm his place for the tournament in Bangladesh, with the squad to be trimmed in half early next month.
England: Stuart Broad (captain), Moeen Ali, Jonathan Bairstow, Gary Balance, Ravi Bopara, Scott Borthwick, Tim Bresnan, Danny Briggs, Jos Buttler, Michael Carberry, Jade Dernbach, Steven Finn, Harry Gurney, Alex Hales, Chris Jordan, Craig Kieswetter, Michael Lumb, Eoin Morgan, Graham Onions, Steven Parry, Samit Patel, Kevin Pietersen, Boyd Rankin, Joe Root, Ben Stokes, James Taylor, James Tredwell, James Vince, Chris Woakes, Luke Wright
Matt Cotton
