But the most frustrating part of the affair is to wake up and see that Kevin Pietersen is gone, cheaply, and that England are straddling the line between collapse and rearguard action. At 4am (roughly, I wasn't in the best state to confirm), England were looking imperious on 160-1. So to be 258-5 at stumps is not the best of scenarios. And yes, there are mitigating factors that can explain the slump, and yes, England still can go on and get a score of 400+ as things stand. But the one score that worries me from the scorecard is:
| Pietersen | c Sangakkara | b Vaas | 1 |
It's not an exaggeration to say that England look to KP to get some runs on the board. He is, without doubt, a superb batsman of the modern game. Aggressive, astute and elegant. When facing bowlers like Muralitharan, you need batsmen who have the confidence to play him effectively. Coming in at number four, with such a solid base laid courtesy of Cook and Vaughan, it's the sort of opportunity that KP is most devastating at exploiting. It's that time of the game when he can take the game well away from an opponent. But at the same time, should he fail, the opposition know that they've made their task easier by removing him.
That's not to say that England will automatically collapse when KP walks. But the pressure that then gets put onto players like Collingwood, Bopara and Prior is intensified. The selectors took a while to cotton on to the qualities of Collingwood but if ever a player will get valuable runs regardless of the game's state, Collingwood is someone England can turn to more often than not. But it's not a fail-safe.
With England precariously positioned, Colly sits on 49no with Prior finding his batting form on this tour on 10no. Bopara's already back in the hutch for a first-ball duck and early wickets tomorrow morning will expose the tail. While Broad and Sidebottom can bat, any runs they contribute are more of a luxury. Further more, as often as I insist that Monty is on the verge of a 50 at number 11, it doesn't materialise. Even a repeat of his 26 vs Sri Lanka at Edgbaston would be welcome.
So we come back to Pietersen. Last summer against India he hit big centuries that helped combat the potent threat of the tourists' batting line-up, albeit in vain come the end of the series. But after three innings in Sri Lanka, his cumulative score is a mere 50, with a best of 31. If England are going to look for victory in Colombo this week, they need KP to hit big in the second innings.
His first innings dismissal for a single run is looking controversial in terms of whether the ball was grounded rather than caught legally. So in this instance, perhaps fortune was not on his side. If Michael Vaughan is aggrieved by the dismissal then the decision must have been a bad one. But umpires making erroneous calls are sadly part of the game. Sreesanth should have been given out at Lords last summer, Sidebottom should have been given not out in the last test... you can't legislate for such decisions. But KP can legislate for his own game, and if he can get it right in the second innings then it will be to England's massive benefit (and relief?).
But much depends on where the game is tomorrow morning. If England can muster some sort of first innings lead, then the pressure is on the Sri Lankans. And that is where Pietersen can come in and take the game out of the reach of the hosts on Day 4. If England trail heavily from the first innings (and this is a worst case scenario), then the pressure is on England to save the game and it will inevitably stifle batting. And consciously trying to stay in seems to be the time when you are most likely to get out.
It's alright though. Monty WILL get a half-century tomorrow morning. And a 10-fer. And Sports Personality of the Year... oh wait!
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