Captain Bans Mediocrity in His Team As Deluge Denies Shot at History

Kevin Pietersen is about as self-restrained in front of a microphone as he is at the crease and last night he overcame the disappointment of failing to beat South Africa 5-0 with some big-hitting hyperbole. "I don't settle for mediocrity," he said. "I want people to chuck their talent around, to be the best people they can possibly be. There's no point in living if you don't want to be the best person you can possibly be."

He was speaking in front of an empty stadium. Cardiff folk, who have seen so much rain in the past month, had already departed for their ark-building lessons. The weather really wasn't trying hard enough to be the best it could be.

The match was mercy-killed a few minutes before seven, the final insult in a soggy season in Wales. But Pietersen gushed like the gutters outside the Swalec Stadium. "The way we played, the way we trained and did our business was absolutely exceptional. I can't ask for any more. We haven't got it wrong at any stage. Everyone delivered. I don't think much can go wrong at the moment. But it will do and we'll have to cope with it when it happens." Pietersen admitted there may be stiffer tasks ahead this winter - "India will be difficult" - but insisted that "we're going to enjoy the good times".

Mickey Arthur, South Africa's coach, added: "KP got results. I was very impressed by the way he led. He seems to have the whole dressing room behind him. He's brought in an aggressive style, which has been fantastic. He has made an impact.

"They haven't played one-day cricket with Freddie Flintoff for a while and getting him back has been huge. They have the ability to take wickets after the power-play overs, with Flintoff and Harmison, and that's a huge bonus because the game can get away from you in the middle overs.

"They have one of the best one-day attacks in the world. Being aggressive is the way to tackle India. They have the ability. Now they must have the ability to do it outside their own country in foreign conditions. If they have that self-belief they can do well.

"I'm very proud with what we achieved in the Test series but I always knew the one-day side would be a bit of a struggle. There was a change in personnel. When we were successful in one-day cricket we had a brand. We need to redefine that brand and get a squad that fits accordingly. I can't put a time-frame on it.

"We were very fortunate [in the past]. We sometimes played with 12 or 13 players in the side because we had players who were multi-skilled. In this series it sometimes felt the other way round to how it's been - as though we had ten players and England had 12. We're heading towards Albie Morkel as our next all-rounder but we need depth in that department. I will have to mull it over after a break in a couple of weeks. We might go back to the specialists."

In the film Clockwise, John Cleese said: "It's not the despair - I can take the despair. It's the hope I can't stand." And yesterday there was an agony of hope in the face of the procession of dark clouds that passed over the Swalec Stadium all afternoon.

Play finally got under way at 4.30pm, two hours late, and we had a single reminder of the vivid cricket Pietersen has brought to this England side, with Matt Prior flying in front of first slip once more to take another stunning catch to see off the dangerous opener Herschelle Gibbs.

If we knew that was all the action we were going to see we would have paid more attention.