Harry Brook had Kevin Pietersen on his video feed before walking out to bat against Sri Lanka in Southampton – and the England batter produced an innings that carried echoes of the former England great. Brook smashed an unbeaten 114 off just 49 balls, with 10 fours and six sixes, to set up England’s 119-run victory in the opening game of their white-ball series on Tuesday.
“I was actually watching his [Pietersen] highlights earlier, funnily enough,” Brook said after the knock. Brook later stated that Pietersen’s return to the England side in a specialist mentor role until the 2027 World Cup has been a source of excitement within the England dressing room, given the impact he had on a generation of players who grew up watching him.
Pietersen’s ability to attack bowlers and access unconventional areas of the ground was something Brook had been studying, and the 26-year-old Brook said he was keen to draw on his experience as they work together. “He was a phenomenal player. The way he accessed different areas of the ground made it really tricky to captain and bowl to, and I’m looking forward to having a lot of conversations about that.
“I mentioned it to him earlier, and him trying to help me in reading different surfaces and using my skills to performing on that pitch as well. That’s not just for white-ball cricket, that’s for Test cricket as well. Hopefully he can have a big impact on my career.
“He’s a hero to a lot of players in that changing room. We all grew up watching him and admiring his work and it’s just awesome to have a man of his calibre in the changing room.”
Brook said there was already plenty he could relate to in Pietersen’s approach to batting, despite the pair having only just begun working together. “Obviously we haven’t had too much time together so far but he’s a great figure to have in the changing room; the type of player he was, he looked at batting slightly differently, in a similar way to me as well. He always wants to try and look to put the bowlers under pressure, and I’m looking forward to working with him a lot more.”
Incidentally, Brook’s innings also drew praise from former England captain Ben Stokes, who took to X to stack the two audacious batters across generations. “I donтАЩt even think the genius of KP could come close to what Harry Brook has talent-wise,” Stokes posted on X. “You are an absolute freak, Harry. YouтАЩre mint to watch.”
Stokes later clarified his post by declaring: “Bit harsh on KP actually, both are freak talents but Brook better IMO is my point.”
