We need to talk about Kevin again - Alex Fisken
Oct 21 2010
The curious case of Kevin Pietersen. Here is a man who has not scored a test match century for 17 months. A man who has recently been dropped from the side and followed that with an outburst criticising the management. A man who has previously been seen as a negative influence on dressing rooms; a point of view that would seem to have recently been backed up by the England team advisor. One would think such a man should be nowhere near the England team, let alone dominating the thoughts and column inches leading up to the biggest series in world cricket. Yet it is not surprising when this man is Kevin Pietersen.
In recent days Pietersen has been described as ‘divisive’ by John Buchanan, a ‘match-winner’ by Michael Clarke, ‘a big question mark’ by Ricky Ponting, and ‘a class act’ by Brett Lee. The reason why he demands such attention, has such profile, is because he remains the only true great player England have. Swann has been a revelation in an England shirt, Strauss captain dependable and Bell seems to be finally coming into his own as an England cricketer.
However these players and the rest of the England team know their best efforts will count for nothing unless Pietersen is back to his best. Pietersen is the only player in that England team who can be called a match winner in Australian conditions.
His ability when on form to make a mockery of bowlers is vital beyond simply the runs he scores. The Ashes is not only the ultimate cricket test a cricketer from England or Australia can face, but it is also the ultimate mental test. We have seen many a player crack and crumble before our eyes under this very pressure. Young players with hitherto brilliant records and seemingly impenetrable techniques have often fallen fowl of this test, the most recent examples of which would be Bell, Bopara and Hughes.
The ability of Pietersen to put the opposition on the back foot, to change the momentum of the match and therefore get the upper hand in the mental game is something no other England player in this present team has. We saw Warne and McGrath do it time and time again, and it is these moments when the momentum shift is sudden and significant that win tight test matches. Think of Adelaide 2006 when Warne wrestled England from what looked like a certain draw and very credible performance to a crushing defeat or Flintoff’s heroics at Edgbaston.
It is these moments than win Test matches and Test series, and Pietersen is the only one who can provide them. Many I’m sure will be up in arms at this point over my omission of Graeme Swann as a match winner, arguing that following his recent form this is bordering on criminal. I would contest that while it has been obvious he has been bowling well he has been the equivalent of a flat track bully so far in his test career. Analysis of his stats show he has picked up the majority of wickets against very poor Pakistan, West Indies or Bangladesh sides.
His stats against more challenging sides are not particularly impressive. He averaged 39.5 on his debut in India which is just about bordering on respectability, averaged 40.50 in the Ashes last year which was frankly poor but did achieve a creditable average of 31.38 against South Africa in South Africa. However the South Africans are notoriously poor players of Spin bowling and I’m sure the challenge of bowling in Australia where the great Muralitharan only managed an average of 75.41 will be exponentially more difficult.
This is a series where two fairly average bowling attacks are pitted against each other, and it will be who can dominate with the bat that will decide the destination of the ashes. With this in mind, Pietersen becomes even more important. He is the only player currently in the widely expected line-up who can score quick runs, putting the opposition on the back foot and taking the game away from them. This ability will be crucial if 400 is regularly playing 500, if a team is unable to score their runs quickly there will be no hope of forcing a win from the match.
While Strauss will be expected to contribute and Bell looks in the form of his life, these two in test cricket play a conservative game, and have never been able or willing to dominate good test match bowling. The same could be said of Trott, whose transformation from the aggressor we saw in county cricket into an extremely dogged accumulator while bringing runs, again, fails to dominate an innings or provide the momentum changes described above. The less said about Cook and Collingwood the better. The onus is entirely on Pietersen to provide the quick runs that will be desperately needed. There is no one else, only him, and that is why he has had and is deserving of the vast amount of attention he has been getting. This is the stage for him to finally become the great batsman we all know he can be, this is the time, the only question left is does he still have it in him.
and his bowling =