Kevin Pietersen: Is He The Right Man To Lead England Into The Ashes?

It looks likely that the ECB will name Kevin Pietersen the man to lead England into a new era after Michael Vaughan stepped down as captain. His reign over the national side seen him captain the side 51 times, just 3 short of Michael Atherton's record of 54 matches as captain. Vaughan will most probably be considered as one of England's greatest captains after winning 26 of his test matches in charge, as-well as winning the ashes in 2005, a feat which every captain will be willed, or even expected to repeat.

Pietersen seems the logical choice to be the man to replace Vaughan, especially after Durham all-rounder Paul Collingwood decided it was time to call and end to his short stint as one day captain, as Pietersen is the only man who is guaranteed his place in both the one day and the test side. After his first attempt into captaincy against New Zealand earlier in the summer ended in defeat, with a few strange decisions in the field it seemed Pietersen wasn't ready to become captain of the side. However he may be thrust into the role as Alistair Cook, probably the next best candidate, is too young and needs more time to establish himself fully as an integral part of the team before he is ready to be England captain.

Vaughan however may have found a good time to stand down as captain. Although it may not be the right attitude to have, English cricket seems fixated on the Ashes. Changing captain now seems the perfect time to give the incoming skipper a chance to ease into his role before the 2009 ashes series against Australia. Pietersen will have himself one test, captaining against his fierce rival Graeme Smith, to settle into his new role and learn what he can bring out himself and his players.

The tour to India in the winter will be a tough tour, even though there are only two test matches, the sub-continent is a tough place to lead a side due to the heat and the need for spinners to rest the faster bowlers. This means critical decisions on whether to play two spinners, with the most likely addition to the side being Graeme Swann. However a big challenge for Pietersen will be his confidence in his own bowling. Will he believe that he can play himself as the second spinner and bowl 15 overs in the day and captain the side at the same time.

Questions will inevitably be asked of Pietersen's ability to captain the side and carry the teams batting hopes if his form dips in the next 3 test matches and 12 one day internationals between now and the new year. If his batting continues in the vein that is has since his introduction into the test side in 2005, then only his captaincy will come into question. Assuming the KP can handle the pressure, which surely someone with his self confidence will be able to handle, then his cricketing knowledge will allow him to set inventive fields and with the help of close friends Andrew Strauss and Paul Collingwood (assuming they keep their places for the foreseeable future) will be able to give him valuable advice with their previous experience captaining their country to help England's newest captain out.

If Pietersen does succeed in the winter tours of India and West Indies (who we will be expected to beat), then England's summer warm up to the ashes should be also a comfortable win, with Sri Lanka not forcing their players to play in England, allowing them to play in the IPL, meaning that series victory should be assured. All in all this gives Pietersen a good range of opponents, with a good chance of victory in all matches and a very good lead up to the all important ashes series in summer 2009.