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Lefties don't have me in a spin, insists Pietersen

By Paul Newman for the Daily Mail Updated: 17:54 EST, 2 February 2012



Kevin Pietersen admits he has been shocked by the calibre of the Pakistan bowling in this Test series but insists he does not have a big problem against left-arm spin.

Pietersen went into the third Test in Dubai defending his record, emphasising his commitment to England and insisting that he would relish the chance to open the batting in the one-day series that follows this match. Turn up: Pakistan's Saeed Ajmal celebrates dismissal of Kevin Pietersen

'I think the mystery of Saeed Ajmal has shocked us a little bit,' said Pietersen in a revealing interview with Sportsmail columnist Nasser Hussain, which will be broadcast on Sky Sports on Friday.

'And they've bowled really well. It's really good spin bowling we actually haven't faced in the last few years.

'I think it's not really the spin, it's the speed at which it's spun and the times it hasn't spun. That's the difference.

'Pakistan and India are incredible outfits in their back yard so we've got to be realistic and look deep. We've had some fantastic team meetings about how we want to try to combat this reputation that England teams don't survive in the subcontinent.

'OK, we've not done it in the first two Tests but now we want to really start getting to the nuts and bolts of playing spin bowling.'

Pietersen again fell to left-arm spin when Abdur Rehman got him in the second Test at Abu Dhabi. Leader of the pack: Pietersen during a training session in Dubai

It is a mode of dismissal that has happened just too often to write off as coincidence but England's No 4 insists that although there was a problem, there is not one now.

'It's a media thing,' he said. 'The one the other day was unfortunate. It was an "umpire's call". It's something that I've had to work on as I had a flaw a few years ago because of the way I played against it and the new DRS system.

'I've had to change the way I play against left-arm spinners. Averaging 37 against left-arm spin is not a train smash. If I was averaging 10 against them then I'd have a problem.'

So why does Pietersen seem to attract more criticism than other England batsmen when things go wrong? 'It is the way I play,' he said. 'I can't explain a dismissal like the second innings the other day (holing out in the first Test in Dubai). If you have a look at the way I played there was no way in the world I tried to hit that guy for six. I just tried to help it on its way.

'But it's worked for me so many times that, goodness, if I'm going to go down I want to go my way.'

Now, a man who has a dismal record in one-day cricket over the last three years wants the chance to open in the 50-over game against Pakistan, saying: 'I haven't really had a chance to think about it but I loved opening during the World Cup. And it would be nice to face some seamers before the spinners turn their arm over! We haven't spoken one-dayers yet but when we do it sounds like a good option.'

Do you still enjoy one-day cricket? 'I've committed myself to playing it as long as I keep enjoying it and as long as I keep doing it. I'd love to play in the next World Cup in 2015 but it's a long way away.'





Kevin Pietersen: Lefties don't have me in a spin








