Pietersen will come good, promises England coach

Kevin Pietersen may have gone 15 innings without a one-day international fifty but England coach Andy Flower insists it is only a matter of time before the star batsman is back in the runs.

Kevin Pietersen may have gone 15 innings without a one-day international fifty but England coach Andy Flower insists it is only a matter of time before the star batsman is back in the runs.

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England are an unbeatable 3-1 up against arch-rivals Australia in a five-match ODI series that concludes at Lord's on Saturday.

But their three wins were concluded with the middle-order having to rectify the damage done as a result of, two fifties from captain and opening batsman Andrew Strauss apart, top-order failures.

Hopes of a 5-0 series whitewash disappeard at the Oval on Wednesday as world champions Australia, first in the ODI rankings to England's fifth, won by 78 runs in a match where
the hosts' middle-order could not rescue their side.

Although he hasn't made a big score, Pietersen's brief innings have not suggested a man struggling with his game.

"I think he (Pietersen) looks in superb form," said Flower.

"His balance is excellent. He is hitting balls through the off side as well as I have ever seen him."

"I would not so much look at 16 innings. He just needs to find the balance in decision-making which allows him to stay at the crease long enough for a big score," stated the former Zimbabwean wicket-keeper.

"He is very hungry to do that for England. He wants to be a game-changer and a match-winner."

"Saturday will be a lovely stage for him at Lord's. It would be great for him to score runs. But I don't think it is a matter of him coming back into form - it is just a matter of him being able to stay long enough at the crease."