Captain Kevin leads England into new era
Kevin Pietersen insists the responsibility of captaining England won’t change him
Kevin Pietersen believes the added responsibility of captaining his country will not affect his attacking playing style, as he prepares to lead England into an exciting new era.
The 28-year-old was officially unveiled at Lord’s yesterday following the shock resignations of Michael Vaughan and one-day skipper Paul Collingwood over the weekend.
Despite having only ever having captained one match in his career, Pietersen was given the nod to take over both the Test and limited overs sides by coach Peter Moores after the pair sat down for clear-the-air talks on Sunday night following a fraught series with South Africa.
Pietersen’s instalment as skipper was met with some trepidation, however, with some suggesting that the job would limit his batting ability, much as it often did with Vaughan and Nasser Hussain before him.
But the Hampshire batsman insists the role will not affect his playing style and says he wants his England team to play in the same attacking manner.
“I hope it won’t restrict the way I play and I think it will be silly for me to start thinking it definitely will affect the way I play,” he said.“ I play the way I play and it’s a way that I’ve been successful with so far in my career and it’s something I want to try and keep at a really high level.
“I want the team to play similarly to the way I play my game, although you have to be accountable for the things you do and be responsible for the decisions you make. I’ve learnt a lot from Michael from the way he has been around the team and the way he’s spoken to players.”
Pietersen also insists he has repaired his relationship with Moores as he turns his attentions now to the fourth Test at The Oval on Thursday.
“I don’t think I would be sitting here today if I wasn’t 100 per cent confident that everything is going to be perfectly fine. I will always ask for advice, I will also be listening, I’ll always ask questions, I will always take advice,” he added.