England must not be complacent warns Pietersen
Wednesday, 03 Sep 2008 22:49
Pietersen does not want England to rest on their laurels
England captain Kevin Pietersen has told his team they must not become complacent following their comprehensive 4-0 series win over South Africa.
The home side were denied the chance to make it 5-0 when rain caused the final one-day international in Cardiff to be abandoned.
Pietersen is wary that England, particularly in the shorter forms of the game, have suffered false dawns in the past and is adamant he will not let that happen this time.
The Hampshire batsman wants England to use their success from the South Africa series to propel them to greater heights in the coming year – with the Ashes series in England next summer being the culmination of that preparation.
But Pietersen also paid tribute to his team-mates for the way they have stepped-up during the series.
"I would say it has gone better than I could have imagined," said Pietersen.
"All the guys are just hungry for success at the moment. A few of our guys in the past may have settled for some sort of comfort zone.
"But I won't settle for a comfort zone, I won't settle for mediocrity. I want people to chuck their talent around and be the best people they can possibly be."
Pietersen hopes England will be able to maintain their current form but admits there will be a point when they are not getting the desired results.
However, he feels they are well equipped to deal with that situation and rectify it quickly when that time does come.
Pietersen added: "The way the guys are training and playing at the moment I don't think much can go wrong at the moment. We know it will do but we'll be ready for it."
England's next international series will be against India in November.