Pietersen makes instant impression

11 August 2008

Kevin Pietersen marked his first Test as England captain with a magnificent century

From the moment Kevin Pietersen strode into the press conference the day before his first Test as captain, his message has remained positive in the extreme.

Reeling off the names of his first line-up like a whirlwind, no-one in the room was in any doubt about Pietersen’s uplifting approach to captaincy.

Just days after the squad had witnessed Michael Vaughan’s tear-stained resignation speech as captain, Pietersen boosted spirits immediately with a passionate, feel-good message.

This was a captain who believed in his own approach and was determined not to follow Vaughan’s more contemplative style of leadership, which was quickly underlined by Pietersen scrapping the pre-match bonding huddle which had been so popular under his predecessor.

While Vaughan was happy to stand at mid-off under his floppy sun hat and built his reputation as one of the cerebral captains in world cricket, Pietersen’s first Test established him as a more energetic type of leader.

Cajoling and cheering his side at every turn, he was rewarded for putting his faith in Steve Harmison with a superb display which set the tone for South Africa to be dismissed for a lowly 194.

Having made his mark in the field, Pietersen then set about leading by example with the bat and helped avert a top-order collapse with a brilliant century.

Pietersen exuded positive intent even before leading England out at the Brit Oval

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For those concerned with fears that Pietersen’s ability as a batsman would be undermined by the responsibilities of captaincy, this was the perfect riposte and effectively settled any of the debates about his ability to combine both roles.

Having secured a first-innings lead for the first time since the first Test at Lord’s, Pietersen then gave the first inkling he might just be that rare breed of captain - a lucky one.

He quickly mastered the art of bowling changes with Stuart Broad and James Anderson claiming wickets in their first overs after coming on - Monty Panesar had done likewise on the first day - and Lady Luck was clearly smiling on him when he dropped Jacques Kallis at mid-off because the all-rounder edged the next delivery to slip.

It gave added weight to former Australian captain Richie Benaud’s advice some years ago, which stated: “Captaincy is 90% luck and 10% skill, but don’t try it without that 10%.”

Perhaps the only thing Pietersen did wrong in his first week was to miss out on the opportunity to hit the winning runs as well, which he failed to do by falling to left-arm spinner Paul Harris with 15 runs still required as they overhauled a target of 197 to win this afternoon.

But if that is the biggest crime of his reign as captain in the months and years to come, England’s hierarchy and cricket fans will settle for that.