Former England batsman Kevin Pietersen has called for struggling opener Adam Lyth to be axed, branding the Yorkshireman "out of his depth".
Pietersen took to Twitter on Sunday, the day after Lyth's final innings of a chastening Ashes series.
The 27-year-old has averaged just 12.77 having scored 115 runs in nine innings and faces an uncertain international future.
But Pietersen's string of posts on the subject culminated in a claim that he could "average more than 10 batting left-handed without pads".
Alex Hales, the dynamic Nottinghamshire batsman who is being tipped to replace Lyth this winter, enjoyed a better write-up from the controversial 35-year-old.
"Lyth needs to be replaced for sure! Out of his depth! Hales needs a gig! He could open against SA (South Africa)", he wrote.
"Hales gotta get a chance? He wouldn't have averaged 10!
"And I would have averaged more than 10 batting left handed without pads!?? Swap Lyth for Hales, promote (Moeen) Ali up to (Jonny) Bairstow's position & (Adil) Rashid in where Ali is now...".
Pietersen returned to Surrey earlier this summer in a bid to overturn his divisive sacking by the England and Wales Cricket Board.
But the negatives were once again judged to outweigh any positive impact his runs might bring by new Andrew Strauss, Pietersen's former captain and the new managing director.