Kevin Pietersen hits out at Sadiq Khan as he removes watch and ring for London trip

Kevin Pietersen has taken a swipe at the Mayor of London by claiming he has removed his watch and wedding ring for a visit to the capital and declaring “thanks Sadiq Khan!” in a post online.

The former England cricketer appeared to criticise crime levels in the city as he revealed he had ditched his gold band for a plastic ring.

Mr Pietersen, 43, has become an outspoken critic of Mr Khan in recent months and called London “an absolute disgrace of a place” in March.

On Tuesday, he took to X, formerly Twitter, to share a photograph of his left hand, saying: “Gotta go into London today. NO WATCH and a plastic ring! Congrats, Sadiq Khan!”

Mr Khan has been accused of losing control of crime in London as he pursues an third term in office, having first been elected eight years ago in 2016.

Susan Hall, his Conservative opponent in May’s mayoral election, released figures earlier this week showing thefts and robberies involving a knife have almost doubled in London during his mayoralty.

The statistics show that “theft from person” has increased by 96 per cent since Mr Khan took office, from 33,983 incidents in the year ending March 2016 to 66,649 in the year ending September 2023.

During the same period, robberies involving a knife have increased by 97 per cent, with 4,215 incidents recorded in the year ending March 2016, rising to 8,307 in the year ending September 2023.

Shoplifting has also increased, with 43,755 incidents recorded in 2016 compared to 52,436 in 2023.

Mr Pietersen, 43, lives in Surrey and also has homes in South Africa, where he was born.

On March 28, he posted on X: “London was once the most amazing city. It’s an absolute disgrace of a place.

“You cannot wear a watch of any value. You cannot walk around with your phone in your hand. Women get their bags and jewellery ripped off them. Cars get smashed in for a quick smash and grab.”

He added: “Sadiq Khan must be really proud of what he’s created?!”

Later that day, Mr Pietersen, who won 104 England caps between 2005 and 2014, posted for a second time about the Mayor of London.

“This bloke has been in charge for years now and all of this London nonsense has been on HIS clock,” he said.

“Blame everyone else, Sadiq Khan – we all know what the greatest leaders DON’T do.”

The Mayor’s office was contacted for comment.