'The Question is If He Can Be As Astute Faced With the Bigger Picture'

Kevin Pietersen has always understood how to get the best out of himself. The question, as Will Smith puts it, is whether he can do the same for other people.

Smith, currently in a rich vein of batting form for Durham, is one of the few players Pietersen has captained in England - he was a member of the Nottinghamshire Second XI whom Pietersen led to victory against Lancashire Seconds in the unimaginatively but accurately named Second Eleven Trophy at Farnsfield in July 2002.

That was the only occasion on which Pietersen captained a side until he stepped in for Paul Collingwood in England's one-day international defeat at the hands of New Zealand this June. Notts won by three wickets and Smith, who scored 58 and shared a stand of 176 with the century-making Pietersen that day, recalls a player still feeling his way in the English county game.

"He was a little less outlandish, or maybe brash is a better word, than he became during his first couple of years with England but, if his captaincy didn't make any great impression on me, I do seem to remember him being fairly tactically astute when it came to his own batting," said Smith.

"That hasn't changed. You can tell from the way he works out bowlers and selects his shots, he does think about his game as well as rely on his instincts and ability - and it was obvious to us then he was immensely talented. The question is whether he can translate that astuteness to the bigger picture of captaincy. He seems to have calmed down in the last couple of years and is less inclined to covet the spotlight, which is a good sign."

Although Smith's ambivalence may reflect the feelings of several former team-mates at Trent Bridge, where the then captain, Jason Gallian, once famously threw Pietersen's kit out of the dressing-room window, Graeme Swann, who played in the one-day international, is unequivocal in his praise.

"I thought he was very good at what he did," the off-spinner said yesterday. "I'm a fairly opinionated bowler who likes a free rein to set his own fields, and he was very open to me doing that, which was excellent.

"After he'd seen the wicket he came up to me and said, 'You realize you'll be bowling your full spell,' which I was very happy with. I didn't get the impression being captain changed his demeanor particularly, though that side of things didn't intrigue the players as much as it seemed to the press. When you're out there playing you're concentrating hard on your own game; you don't get too much time to study others."

Samit Patel was another who played for Nottinghamshire Seconds at Farnsfield and the all-rounder, who yesterday won a place in the one-day squad to play South Africa, said: "I remember KP hit a century and took a wicket, and I got 23 not out. He's got character and he brings character out of those around him as well. He has the respect of his team-mates and the opposition players and I think that he'll take to the role very quickly."

Leading role

Kevin Pietersen's captaincy experience comes from two one-day games. In July 2002 the South African-born batsman led Nottinghamshire's Second XI to a three-wicket win over their Lancashire counterparts at Farnsfield CC, scoring 113 in a successful run-chase. On his next appointment as captain, to lead England against New Zealand at Lord's on June 28 this year, he was asked what experience of leadership he could offer. His reply - "Zilch" - was not as accurate as the Black Caps' bowling, which restricted Pietersen's score to six and ensured that England lost the match by 51 runs and the series 3-1.