Jonathan Trott does not act like a man concerned at being asked to be the second South African-raised cricketer in four years to win England the Ashes at The Oval. Speaking at Trent Bridge before scoring a hundred for Warwickshire that cemented his place in England’s starting XI for the final Test, Trott was relaxed at the idea of such a mighty assignment on debut.

“I feel confident that I can do the job,” he said. “I’ve stepped up to new levels okay before. I would just try and break it down, think of it as 22 yards, the same Dukes ball the county guys bowl. The bowling might be quicker, more accurate, there might be more pressure, but it’s just another game.

“All the hype is the stuff that can distract you, so I try and focus on what’s important. There are so many variables in cricket, you don’t need any more. I’m in the best form I’ve ever been in, so it’s probably the best time. I knew my chance would come as long as I didn’t chase it.”

It is unfair to expect an uncapped player to produce heroics of anything like the magnitude of Kevin Pietersen’s tour de force of 2005, but England need something special in a must-win game and they think Trott has the required self-belief.

He knows he will walk in the shadow of Pietersen’s great innings. “There has been a lot of talk about that game [in 2005],” he said. “A lot of people compare me with Kevin. We grew up in the same country and played schoolboy cricket there. I don’t look to emulate him or anyone but if I see someone do something well, I’ll try and copy it. If you stand still at this game you get left behind.”

The first time Trott and Pietersen crossed paths, in an under-19 game in South Africa, was not without incident. “He was an off-spinner then,” Trott recalled. “He bowled me one ball and I blocked it, and he started shouting at me. I told him to toss it up if he wanted to abuse me, and he did. I slogged him out of the ground.”

Trott has already had a taste of the Ashes, having been in the squad for the fourth Test at Leeds. He almost came in for Graeme Swann when Matt Prior suffered a back spasm. “It was chaotic for a while. When Matt went down, I was told I might come in if he didn’t play. They would have called in another keeper and gone with a bowler less.

“Alastair Cook came running over and said: ‘Be sure to have some throw-downs, you might be playing.’ Matt came out and every time he caught the ball he grimaced. But in the end he was fine. I hung around a while and then packed my gear and got out of everyone’s way.”

Australians may routinely disparage the resolve of Englishmen but they know South Africans are not easily intimidated and Trott, who lived the first 21 years of his life in the Western Cape, is culturally every bit a South African. He has the single-minded focus, and the strong accent, to prove it.

Trott played two Twenty20s for England in 2007 without success — he was hampered by a fractured hand after Liam Plunkett hit him in the nets — but his Test selection may be seen as further evidence that the game here struggles to nurture young batsmen of substance.

Trott, 28, represented South Africa at under-15 and under-19 levels before following his parents to England in 2002. His father — who originally emigrated to South Africa to run a sports shop and there married a Rhodesian — had moved back to Surrey to take up a job as a cricket coach. His family claims descent from the Australian Trotts, Harry and Albert, who played Ashes Tests in the Victorian era.

Trott says he did not agree with the way cricket was run in South Africa — many white people said they were concerned that racial quotas hurt their chances of selection — but admits he saw the English system as a way of furthering his cricketing education.

“In county cricket you play a lot of good cricket,” he said. “I wanted to be the best player I could and thought it would give me the best grounding. It was a case of getting over here as young as you can and seeing where you can go. I’d see if I can play for South Africa, and if I can’t, then I’d see if I can play for England. I have learnt in England to use my feet and to get forward. They bowl to hit the stumps more here, although you must also be careful not to chase the ball if it leaves you. Playing here has definitely enhanced my game.”

After his Twenty20 games, Trott says he tried too hard to attract England’s attention again. His form peaked and troughed and he concluded it was a mental rather than a technical problem. Ashley Giles, Warwickshire’s director of cricket and England selector, played a key part in how he revised his approach.The results are plain to see. Trott scored more than 2,000 runs in all competitive cricket in 2008 and already this season has topped 1,900, more than 850 of them in limited-overs games, which means he can also expect to feature in the Twenty20 and one-day international series against Australia.

He has clearly matured, something he attributes to two winters with the England Performance Programme and marriage to Abi Dollery, Warwickshire’s public relations co-ordinator, in April.

Last summer’s efforts left him exhausted and he withdrew from an England Lions tour of India — though he later joined them in New Zealand and did well — and he still cuts a fidgety presence at the crease. But by the only measure that counts, weight of runs, he is the leading batsman in the country over the past two years. England have taken a mighty gamble, but Trott deserves his chance.

TROTT'S AUSTRALIAN CONNECTION

Jonathan Trott says he is related to the Trott brothers who played for Australia in the late 1800s

HARRY TROTT The older brother was born in Melbourne in 1866 and toured England four times, captaining Australia in 1896. An excellent leader, he played in 24 Tests as an allrounder

ALBERT TROTT Was impressive in three Tests for Australia before being overlooked for the 1896 tour of England. He then played for Middlesex, hitting a six over the pavilion roof at Lord’s. A great allrounder, he played for England against South Africa. Shot himself dead in 1914