 Pietersen has been looking to rediscover his form in South Africa |
Former Australia coach John Buchanan feels batsman Kevin Pietersen could be "a major problem" for England in their bid to retain the Ashes in Australia. Pietersen is in the squad for the Ashes - which begins next month - but has not scored a Test century since March 2009. He used social networking site Twitter to condemn England's decision to drop him from the one-day squad this summer. "He has the potential to be fragmentary and an individualist," Buchanan told The Wisden Cricketer magazine. "They [England] seem to have a new mental toughness and they are more consistent, except for the odd glitch, which is mainly Kevin Pietersen. "He is a quality player and he could be an incredible strength for them but, if he's not scoring runs, he could become a major problem for the batting line-up and the entire team.  | England teams in the past would often be beaten before the Test started. They didn't believe in themselves, even when they were ahead, but they are better at handling that now |
"[Team director] Andy Flower has been trying to work on that. Pietersen hasn't done himself or the team any favours with his recent Twittering. "Two of the things that will be tested in Australia are strength and unity and clearly he hasn't understood his role within the team yet." England will travel to Australia off the back of Test and one-day series victories over Pakistan this summer, hoping for a better defence of the Ashes than their last effort in 2006-07 when they slumped to a 5-0 whitewash after winning the trophy two years earlier. Buchanan, who coached the Aussies between 1999 and 2007, has acted as a consultant to the England squad this year and expects the tourists to put up a better fight this time. "None of them has any experience of winning in Australia," he admitted. "Playing overseas is very different and they have yet to prove they can do it over a five-Test series in Australia. "At some point doubts will start to creep into their heads and it is all about how they deal with them. They need to retain this spirit and sense of purpose. "England teams in the past would often be beaten before the Test started. They didn't believe in themselves, even when they were ahead, but they are better at handling that now. | 606: DEBATE |
"The top four - Andrew Strauss, Alastair Cook, Jonathan Trott and Pietersen - will be England's most important players. That is where the series will be decided. Whoever wins the battle of the top fours will win the series. "The most critical member could be the bowling coach, David Saker, with his knowledge of Australian conditions, players and balls and his ability to bring them together as a solid unit. "The England bowlers are all good players, so they should be able to adapt." Former England captain Pietersen's last Test century came against the West Indies at Port of Spain in March 2009. In this summer's Test series with Pakistan he averaged only 23.33 with the bat, with a top score of 80 in the second Test at Edgbaston. The 30-year-old was subsequently dropped from the one-day squad to face Pakistan and responded with a foul-mouthed tirade on Twitter for which he was fined and later apologised. He is currently looking to rediscover his form before the tour to Australia with a spell playing for KwaZulu-Natal Dolphins in his native South Africa. England's tour of Australia gets under way on 5 November with a warm-up game against Western Australia, with the first Ashes Test starting on 25 November in Brisbane.
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