Pietersen aspires to be world number one

LONDON, July 11: Audacity, self-belief and an ability to improvise bordering on genius combine to make Kevin Pietersen the most exciting batsman currently strutting the world stage.

In an age of increasingly dizzy run rates there are no shortages of pretenders to Pietersen's unofficial title.

One shot alone in the second test against Sri Lanka last month lifts Pietersen from the pack, however, and puts him alongside such masters of the unorthodox as Denis Compton and Viv Richards.

On the second day of the test at Edgbaston, Pietersen decided to employ a reverse swing against the consistently dangerous Muttiah Muralitharan.

Daring enough in itself, the stroke became an instant masterpiece when the ball soared high into the stands for a six.

The self-confidence which infuses Pietersen's batting has been evident since he announced he was unhappy with South Africa's quota system for black players and decamped to England, the birthplace of his mother.

After three increasingly fraught years at Nottingham he joined Hampshire and the county's Australian captain Shane Warne, in many ways a Pietersen prototype.

After serving his qualifying period, he was selected to tour Zimbabwe in September 2004, averaging 104 in three innings. In the following year he showed his appetite for a fight when he was similarly effective in the face of a raucous and hostile reception during the one-day series in South Africa.

BETTER BET

Despite his pyrotechnics in the one-day game, Pietersen was not picked to play against Bangladesh at the start of the 2005 series and was far from an automatic choice for the first test against Australia at Lord's.

In the end, after much debate and consultation, the selectors concluded that 25-year-old Pietersen was a better bet than 35-year-old Graham Thorpe.

Rarely can a hunch have been rewarded so swiftly.

Pietersen top-scored in both innings of a losing match and, indicative of his self-assurance, he deliberately targeted Australia's two best bowlers.

Glenn McGrath had made the England top order look like schoolboys. Pietersen responded with a four, six and a four from successive deliveries. He then turned his attention to Warne, hitting the leg spinner into the grandstand. There was also the little matter of three dropped catches, which did not appear to bother Pietersen in the slightest. Instead he seemed puzzled when questioned at an end-of-day news conference.

''That's part of cricket,'' he said. ''Everybody's going to drop catches, no one's gone through a career and not dropped a catch, I don't think.'' The catching did not improve. A further three were grassed as a gripping summer reached its climax before the England management spotted a technical flaw and the problem was rectified.

Pietersen saved his best for last. Needing a draw to secure the series at the Oval, he struck an unforgettable 158 with seven sixes, hooking Brett Lee off his eyebrows over fine leg.

CELEBRITY STATUS

Good if not exceptional series followed in Pakistan and India, followed by another 158 in the first test against Sri Lanka and 142 in the second.

After 14 tests, Pietersen averages 48.07 with a strike rate of 70.62 runs per 100 balls. An average of 50 is the accepted division between the very good and the great, a landmark attained by those other superb entertainers Compton and Richards, whose strike rates have unfortunately not been recorded.

Away from the cricket field Pietersen is a thoroughly modern sportsman, showing off a variety of hairstyles and relishing the attention duly accorded in England's celebrity culture.

Within his chosen sport, he has the talent and ambition to become not only the most breathtaking but also the most prolific batsman in the game.

''In the longer form of the game, he has the potential to become one of the world's greats,'' said Andrew Strauss, who captains England at Lord's this week in the first test against Pakistan.

''Many people have looked at his technique and marvelled over the fact that it seems unorthodox. Balls pitched outside the off stump can easily be whipped through mid-wicket with a flick of the wrists.

''What those people miss, however, is his highly organised defence. For every ball that goes crashing to the boundary there are many more that he either leaves or plays back with a straight bat.

''If he can keep his huge appetite for runs, then there is no reason why he can't become the world's best.''

REUTERS