Fletcher helps out KP

Pietersen seeks advice from former England coach

By Rachel Griffiths   Last updated: 11th March 2010   Subscribe to RSS Feed

Fletcher helps out KP

Pietersen and Fletcher

One of the things that impressed me most about Pietersen when I worked with him was that where a lot of people run away from their problems, he has always been willing to meet them head-on.

Duncan Fletcher
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Former England coach Duncan Fletcher has revealed Kevin Pietersen contacted him for advice on how to escape his batting slump following the one-day international series in Bangladesh.

By his own high standards, Pietersen has delivered some dismal displays with the bat during England's ongoing tour on the subcontinent, scraping just 69 runs from seven innings.

The South African-born right-hander, who has particularly struggled against left-arm spin, is desperate to reclaim his status as one of the world's premier batsmen in England's upcoming Test series against the Tigers.

And Fletcher, who gave Pietersen his England debut back in 2005, believes the 29-year-old's willingness to confront his problems "head-on" will help him regain his form.

"He called me at the end of the one-day series and we had a long chat about his game. We discussed certain technical points," said Fletcher in his column in the Guardian.

Weaknesses

"All players have weaknesses. One of the things that impressed me most about Pietersen when I worked with him was that where a lot of people run away from their problems, he has always been willing to meet them head-on.

"If he feels that facing left-arm spin is an area of concern, then he will practise playing that style of bowling over and again in the nets.

"If he does have a flaw in his technique he can still rely on his decision-making, his judgment of how or whether to play a delivery, to see him through."

Fletcher also believes that Pietersen must establish himself at the crease if he wants to return to his big-scoring ways in the first Test, which starts in Chittagong on Friday.

"There is a perception that Pietersen is an exciting, attacking player and because of that people expect him to go out there in Test cricket and hit the ball from the start," added Fletcher.

"That is not his style. If you look back at his best innings for England, in both one-day and Test cricket, he was definitely someone who got himself established at the crease before he expanded his game to attack the bowling."