THE TROUBLE with Kevin Pietersen is that he doesn’t know when he is out of form. In most people’s books, eight one-day innings without a fifty, and 10 visits to the crease in Tests with only two scores over 41, constitutes a pretty lean trot and every reason for stern self-examination. Not for Pietersen.

Mohammad Asif and Mitchell Johnson may have suggested to most observers that Pietersen might be vulnerable to the well-directed short ball, but last week the only thing the man himself would admit he was frightened of was the ice-baths the England players are dunked in after every training session.

When he has got his eye in, and there is a match to win on a good batting pitch, the form book gets shredded along with the bowling. Tell-tale averages, hard-won reputations, both are scattered to the winds. He knows that once the ground work is done, he can score at around two runs per ball against the seamers.

Look at yesterday’s split. Pietersen versus spin: 30 off 50 balls. Pietersen versus pace: 60 off 36. His frustration with the spinners led to the run-out of Ian Bell.

We are coming to understand the situations that really get Pietersen’s creative juices flowing. Because England are so bad at one-day cricket they don’t often get themselves into those difficult-but-gettable run-chases. But when they do Pietersen’s the man. He loves their look-at-me potential, which is what made it so nonsensical for England to bat him at No 3, as they did against Australia last week.

Against Australia last year in Bristol, when England lost their fifth wicket, they needed another 103 off 87 balls. Yesterday, when Michael Yardy was fifth out, the target was 93 off 77. Very similar equations and a very similar impersonation of a fire engine from Pietersen. It may not be coincidence that both innings were played around a month before a big Ashes series.

The moral of this story is this: any Australian fast bowler who is thinking of warming-up his “chicken” impersonation for when he dupes Pietersen this winter should perhaps think again. Glenn McGrath, Brett Lee and whoever’s chosen to support them are going to have to be on top of their games, especially on the better batting surfaces of Adelaide and Perth.