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If ever there was any doubt about the importance of Kevin Pietersen to
the England side - and there really should not have been - it was surely
dispelled by his remarkable Test century at Headingley.
Against a South Africa seam attack of the highest class, on a pitch
showing signs of uneven bounce and with his side in some trouble,
Pietersen produced one of the finest centuries this historic ground can
have witnessed.
While some might resist Pietersen's claim to greatness by virtue of some
soft dismissals and a certain inconsistency, it is doubtful any of
those fortunate enough to be present on the third day of this game would
agree. Instead they may well reflect for a lifetime on the day they
witnessed greatness in action. They can be no doubt that Pietersen is,
at his best, a magnificent player.
This was certainly Pietersen at his best. It was not so much the number
of runs he scored - impressive though that was - as the manner he scored
them. In circumstances where his colleagues had prodded and poked,
Pietersen thrashed high-quality bowling around the ground as if
practising against a village team. Even a bowler as skilled as Dale
Steyn was pummelled and plundered. As Allan Donald, South Africa's
bowling coach and one of Pietersen's childhood heroes, said afterwards:
"It reminded me of when I ran into Brian Lara. It was in the category of
a genius."
His batting in recent months - from the ODI centuries in the UAE, to the
IPL century, the Colombo century and a double-century at Guildford of
almost dazzling class - has attained standards reached by few. The man
who he most resembled in this innings, in terms of mastery, bravado,
strength and stature was Sir Viv Richards. And there really isn't any
higher praise than that.
It is far from the first time that Pietersen has rescued England. Just
as the 2005 Ashes might well have had a different ending but for
Pietersen's swashbuckling century at the Oval, so they might well be
still searching for their first global trophy had it not been for
Pietersen's brilliance in the Caribbean World T20 in 2010.
It is a shame for all cricket lovers - not just England supporters -
that it seems he will miss this year's event. Players like this appear
so rarely and, while Pietersen can be drafted into England's World T20
squad until August 18 without complication, it seems unlikely either
side will compromise in the stand-off over scheduling, rest and other
opportunities.
And there is the rub for England. It is just possible that Pietersen is
playing his penultimate Test. It is just possible that Pietersen's
request to play the entire IPL season could see him decline the offer of
a central contract in September. It is also just possible that
Pietersen's complaints about the international schedule while making
arrangements to play more T20 cricket around the world will have so
irritated the England management that he will not be offered one.
England can live without Pietersen. Great players have come and gone
before; the sun still set and the tide still came in. But there should
be no doubt that England will be much diminished if they lose him. It is
hard to think of another man in English cricket who could have played
this innings and without it, they would surely be facing an awkward
final two days in this game.
Perhaps the timing of this innings was no coincidence. Perhaps it was
Pietersen's way of stating his worth. If so he made his case eloquently.
He transformed an attritional day of cricket where his side faced the
possibility of the follow-on into a riveting event that all witnessed
will talk of for years. Cricket does not have so many players who can do
that.
Whatever the rights and wrongs of the current issues between Pietersen
and the ECB, both sides need to try again to resolve their problem. It
is time for the coterie of managers who work at the ECB to earn their
corn and find a solution. Pietersen wants to play for England and
England want him to play for them. Both parties will be weakened by a
parting of the ways. More importantly, so will world cricket.
"I've never batted better in my life," Pietersen said afterwards as he
reflected on his form of the last few months. "My last two Test
centuries have been my best two - Colombo for heat reasons - and today
against an unbelievable bowling attack that never stops running in. To
get runs against that attack is something I'll always cherish.
"I had a big wake-up call against Pakistan last winter. I was a bit
overweight and I wasn't physically in as good nick as I should have been
in that series. I averaged twelve-and-a-half in those three Tests,
which really hurt me, as I set myself high standards. It wasn't good
enough.
"But I took it on the chin and I went and spent hours and hours in the
nets with Mushtaq Ahmed. I spent all of June doing that in order to get
in good nick for this series. It's just hard work and figuring out my
game. Hard work pays off."
There was a heartening debut from James Taylor, too. For a 22-year-old
who has played all but this season in the bottom tier of the County
Championship to come into a high-pressure situation in a Test and help
Pietersen add 147 was testament not just to his pluck, but to the worth
of county cricket. It is lazily denigrated by many, but the fact is that
Cook, Strauss, Trott and Prior all scored centuries on Test debut,
while Bell and Pietersen scored half-centuries. If players can step-up
and perform so readily, it must be a decent breeding ground.
Perhaps it was appropriate that Pietersen's best batting came when he
was in partnership with the diminutive Taylor. Just as Pietersen dwarfed
Taylor in terms of height, so he dwarfed his colleagues in terms of
contribution and class.
While his excellence should not mask the flaws in England's batting -
Jonathan Trott and Ian Bell were both out to hideous strokes - it has
given them a chance to claw their way back into the game. There is still
a great deal of work ahead - they trail by 68 - but if Pietersen and
co. can build a substantial lead on day four, South Africa might yet
face an uncomfortable final day on a wearing pitch.
George Dobell is a senior correspondent at ESPNcricinfo
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© ESPN EMEA Ltd.
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