Bell earns Pietersen praise

Ian Bell led from the front with an innings of 60 not out

Kevin Pietersen paid tribute to Ian Bell after the pair teamed up to guide England to a nine-wicket NatWest Twenty20 international victory over New Zealand at Old Trafford.

Bell struggled during the recent Test series but led from the front with 60 not out from 46 balls as England easily chased down the tourists’ 123 for nine.

Pietersen, who joined Bell at 48 for one after Luke Wright’s dismissal, said: “What a great knock, the shots he played. I think he should open the innings. He’s a fantastic player who can hit boundaries.”

England were on top from the moment James Anderson grabbed the first wicket in only the second over, and Pietersen, who hit 42 not out, hailed their all-round showing.

“It was a fantastic performance, you can’t ask for better. We hit our straps from ball one and it was a really classy performance,” he said.

“The guys showed tonight, on our day it’s pretty hard to beat this team. Everybody should be proud.”

England also triumphed in the Twenty20 clashes in New Zealand over the winter before going on to lose the one-day series, but Pietersen does not expect a repeat.

“We’ve got to go and make sure we hit our straps from the first ball again and we’re up for the fight. It breeds confidence a victory like tonight so let’s hope (we can win).”

New Zealand suffered a blow in the warm-up when Jacob Oram picked up a hamstring injury and captain Daniel Vettori revealed he is unlikely to be fit for the first one-dayer on Sunday.

“I think he’ll struggle to play that game,” Vettori said. “I think it’s probably a week-long injury, maybe a bit longer.”

The Black Caps are also without Jesse Ryder, but Vettori refused to blame injury problems, instead admitting the Black Caps had been “totally outplayed”.

“The wicket was a little bit tricky and we got off to tough start losing three early wickets,” he said. “It makes it hard for guys like Brendon McCullum to show his wares.

“When you post a score like that it’s easy in the second innings and Bell and Pietersen played exceptionally well.

“If you turn up here and play decent cricket you can have a chance of winning the game.”

Vettori, however, insisted New Zealand can perform well in the shortest form of the game, saying: “We made the semi-finals of the Twenty20 World Cup, we just haven’t played well.

“We’ve come close a few times but we were totally outplayed today.”

Vettori’s opposite number Paul Collingwood singled out England’s opening bowlers Anderson and Stuart Broad for praise.

“Right from ball one, Jimmy and Broady were on it and the way the boys knocked the runs off was very clinical.

Brendon McCullum struggled to bat freely on a 'tricky' wicket

“The boys were hitting the deck pretty hard. They just hit great areas. It was doing a little bit as well.

“Everybody wants to put their hands up. We’re very versatile in our bowling unit, we’ve got cricketers who can go out and adapt to the conditions.”

All the publicity in the last few days has surrounded the financial backing of Sir Allen Stanford for a lucrative Twenty20 clash in Antigua in November, and Collingwood insisted England have plenty of reasons to be positive about their Twenty20 credentials.

“We’ve won the last three and hopefully that keeps the momentum going. We’re learning all the time and everybody is adapting to their roles,” he said.

The captain, however, expects New Zealand to bounce back for the one-day series.

“We’ve put a great performance in but it means nothing for Sunday,” he added.

Man of the match Bell was relieved to rediscover some form after a “hard month”.

He said: “It was a bit of fun. It’s been a hard month for me but it’s nice to get out there and hit the ball.

“I set myself high standards and the runs haven’t come but the work ethic has been of a high standard so hopefully I just need time in the middle.

“I was lucky to get a game in for Warwickshire (in midweek) and get a few runs.”

He also paid tribute to the bowlers, adding: “It was a fantastic wicket but to keep them to 120 was a great effort.”

Bell would also be happy to keep his opening role alongside Wright.

“If that’s what they want me to do, I’ll do it,” he added. “I’d like to give it a go, yes.”