Pietersen's influence already rubbing off on Brook, England

Kevin Pietersen's influence on England's white-ball setup is already starting to show, if their commanding victory over Sri Lanka in Southampton on Tuesday is anything to go by.

Pietersen only joined up with England's squad earlier this month in a specialist mentor role until the 2027 edition of the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia and the ICC Hall of Famer is already making an impact on the playing group and captain Harry Brook.

Brook scored an unbeaten 114 against Sri Lanka in the opening match of their white-ball series in Southampton on Tuesday as England registered an impressive 119-run victory, drawing comparisons with Pietersen with his knock and further strengthening his claim as the best all-format player in men's cricket as he smashed 10 fours and six sixes in his 49-ball knock.

Pietersen was on hand in the stands enjoying every moment of the superb innings and Brook admitted he received some inspiration from watching highlights of the England great in the lead-up to the match.

"I was actually watching his (Pietersen) highlights earlier, funnily enough," Brook said. 

"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 Pietersen had already made a strong impression on himself and his England teammates as they build towards next year's 50-over World Cup at the end of 2027.

"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," Brook said of Pietersen.

"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."

Former England quick Steven Finn declared Brook was the best all-format batter in men's cricket after his latest knock and the ICC Men's Player Rankings confirm that claim as the right-hander is the only player that sits inside the top 15 spots in all three of the Test, ODI and T20I batting rankings.

While that assertion can surely be debated over time, former England captain Ben Stokes has no doubt that Brook's name belongs right at the top when discussing the best modern day players and even suggested he had the edge over Pietersen when comparing the two stars.

"I don’t even think the genius of KP could come close to what Harry Brook has talent-wise," Stokes posted on X.

"Is it really that hard to just sit back and admire these players for what they are, on the good days and the bad days, and stop berating them for doing things that we would never, ever, ever even think of doing because we simply aren’t on their level to think that way?

"You are an absolute freak, Harry. 

"You’re 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."

Brook and England will be back in action against Sri Lanka when the series switches to Cardiff for the second match of the T20I series on Thursday.

Series Schedule:

First T20I: England won by 119 runs

Second T20I: 17 September, Cardiff

Third T20I: 19 September, Manchester

First ODI: 22 September, Chester-le-Street

Second ODI:  24 September, Leeds

Third ODI:  27 September, The Oval