Without the wind to assist him at the MCG, Mitchell Johnson may not pose the threat to England that he did in Perth

Imagine a leg‑break bowler who cannot bowl a googly or top‑spinner. Or an off‑break bowler without a drifter. Then contemplate the lot of a left-arm pace bowler whose sole modus operandi is to fire the ball across the bows of the right‑handed batsman and hope he chases one and edges. Think in fact of Alan Mullally. There are few things batsmen like more than a predictable bowler who spins or swings it one way only.

For two years, since he destroyed South Africa in Durban, until he did the same to England at the Waca, that was the fortune of Mitchell Johnson. Fast of course when he got it right, but the more he tried to swing the ball into the right‑hander, the delivery that is fundamental to any left‑arm paceman of ambition, the more it seemed to want to do the opposite.

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So batsmen were able to play him on the line. Anything on the stumps and bat could be put to ball while anything off target could be ignored secure in the knowledge that it was not going to boomerang back and make them look foolish. Then, last Friday, in one inspirational bowling spell, that whole perception changed. From here on in it may not actually matter if Johnson gets another ball from the straight, for the notion has been planted that he might, and the threat is often as potent as the deed.

Quite how Johnson manages to swing the ball at all is a mystery, probably as much to him as anyone. Certainly he does not conform to the normal physical laws of orthodox swing bowling, where the seam is upright and a loose wrist promotes backward rotation on the ball to maintain its stability, like a gyroscope. No teachers of swing would need to look further than the seam position maintained by Jimmy Anderson at his best.

But this is all delivered from a high arm action. Johnson's bowling arm is so low, a round‑arm slingshot, that the umpires will soon be required to wear hard hats. So low indeed that he cannot physically get his wrist into the upright position that can deliver a perfect seam. In fact it was perplexing to see the television super-slow motion, which showed the seam scrambling on the way down, which is to say revolving randomly. Unless very occasionally the seam actually scrambles itself into the correct position by chance, it is hard to understand how the ball then swerves.

Nor is it quite the same as the movement obtained by the Sri Lankan fast bowler Lasith Malinga, with whom Johnson is often compared. However, the difference is considerable, Johnson's bowling arm coming round between 10 and 11 on a clock face, while Malinga "The Slinger" would barely reach 10 o'clock. The swing Malinga gets is more akin to that which might be seen with a Frisbee, a skimming motion, where the rotation on the ball is almost in a horizontal plane: swerve rather than swing in other words.

Instead, leaving aside all the reports of remedial work done since he was dropped from the Adelaide Test (which seem to range from eulogising Troy Cooley's biomechanics to a 10‑minute session with Dennis Lillee) the strongest theory regarding Johnson's performance in Perth relates to nothing more than the wind. From the second day onwards, the wind blew consistently oven-hot from the east, a counterpoint to the prevailing Fremantle Doctor, the cooling south‑westerly sea breeze that comes up the Swan River virtually on a daily basis at some stage in the afternoon. This easterly, say those who know the Waca well, is the wind that promotes swing.

But an understanding of why it happened makes it no easier to play. In fact, it was the arbitrary nature of his spell that contributed to England's downfall, for alert batsmen can look for clues in the bowler, from the way he holds the ball, to spotting the shiny side. Quite clearly Johnson tried to bowl considerably more of the inswinging delivery but succeeded only in pushing the ball wide instead as it refused to change course. Leaving the ball in such circumstance becomes fraught, to which Paul Collingwood would testify, his decision to offer no stroke too far gone to be able to react sufficiently quickly when the ball ducked into his pads.

It will be a surprise if Johnson can repeat his trickery at the MCG. Fully enclosed grounds can create their own micro-climate, but as with the Gabba it is not renowned as a swinging ground but rather one that can seam while the ball is new, and perhaps reverse swings later. The danger for England's batsmen now, though, is that because of the potential, there will be a temptation to want to play deliveries that until now their gameplan has been to avoid. It is a mindset they will do well to avoid although one it will be hard to avoid.

As Andy Flower has said about Perth, although the destructive spell came when the Australians had had a chance to work on the ball, there were indications with the newish ball to England's pair of left‑handed openers that he was just shaping the ball a fraction away from them. Perhaps the biggest clue will come from Ben Hilfenhaus and Ryan Harris, both of whom can swing the new ball. If they fail to get any real movement then the chances are that Johnson will not either.

India's Selectors panel, led by former Indian captain Kris Srikanth, named the 30-man probables list for the 2011 World Cup, which is going to be held on the sub-continent. There were some surprise inclusions like that of Ajinkya Rahane and Wriddhiman Saha, while Robin Uthappa and Irfan Pathan were two of the high-profile exclusions from the squad.

India have had a dearth of all-rounders in the past, which has contributed to the imbalance in the team. The current Indian team has some potential all-rounders in Ravindra Jadeja and Yusuf Pathan. Irfan Pathan was supposed to be India's best all-rounder since the days of Kapil Dev, but he has been rather unfortunate to lose his way and has faded into obscurity in the recent past.

Ravindra Jadeja and Yusuf Pathan are both expected to make the cut for the 15-man squad for the World Cup and the duo will compete for the No. 7 slot in the Indian first team. They both are spinning all-rounders and could be utilised as the fifth bowler.

Jadeja has had his fair share of criticism in the past for not being a good enough batsman at the international level. He was woeful in the T20 World Cup 2009 in England where he was unable to accelerate the scoring rate which ultimately led to the demise of the team in the tournament. He can score quick singles and keep the scoreboard ticking but at No. 7 in sub-continental conditions, it is important to score quickly and Jadeja is not the ideal candidate for that.

Yusuf Pathan has amazing prowess in the field of big hitting, however, he has not had a very successful time for India with the bat. His recent century was one of the best attacking innings in recent history, but he would have to face much stronger bowling attacks than the paltry New Zealand attack. Also, he has a tendency to lose his wicket when the need of the hour is to stick around to rebuild the innings which proved costly in the game against Pakistan in the Champions Trophy 2009, when he had the experienced Rahul Dravid for company.

In my opinion, Irfan Pathan could have provided more options than both of these crickets for Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who has admitted in the past that he would like to have all-rounders in his team. Jadeja's left-arm spin does not provide much variation to Yuvraj Singh's effective left-arm orthodox. Yusuf Pathan has not been economical in the 50-over format at 5.66 runs per over and also does not have a good strike rate.

Pathan emerged on the scene as one of the best fast bowlers that India have ever produced and he justified his tag by performing immensely in the start of his career which included good performances against Australia and Pakistan. With the arrival of Greg Chappell as the coach of the Indian team, Irfan was promoted to the No. 3 slot on a number of occasions to provide a surprise hitting option in the powerplays.

As a result, Pathan's batting improved tremendously and he has a very decent average in both One Day Internationals and Test cricket. His bowling took a turn for the worse as he suffered a hge dip in form. A number of niggles and injuries did not help his cause and he had to eventually lose out on his place in the team. 

He made his comeback in the successful T20 campaign in South Africa where the young brigade led the energetic Dhoni won the World Cup final against Pakistan. He was India's third choice fast bowler behind Sreesanth and R P Singh but he impressed with his pace variations and clever bowling in the shortest official version of the game.

He was awarded the Man of the Final for his excellent performance in the Final where he picked 3 important wickets and it was the beginning of a false dawn for the career of Irfan Pathan. The left-armer was subsequently selected for many One Day tournaments where he was the third/fourth choice seamer and the No. 7 batsman for the team. He was also selected for the tour of Australia in which he turned in a superb performance which helped India win at Perth.

However he was not consistent enough and with the emphasis on T20 cricket through the IPL, his form dipped badly. He has lost his pace and has not produced the swing that he was capable of in the past and as a result was smacked all round the park in the IPL editions of 2009 and 2010 where he was the main bowler for Kings XI Punjab. 

He has performed very decently with the bat and has produced some good knocks in the Ranji trophy and the IPL but as far as his bowling is concerned, he has been a pale shadow of himself. He was recognised as a special talent when he broke into the talent and the selectors, BCCI and more importantly, Dhoni must retain his faith in the lad.

At this juncture, I wish to present you an example of Stuart Broad to illustrate why the BCCI has to shoulder a part of the blame for the dip in form of Irfan Pathan. Broad was hit for six sixes by Yuvraj Singh and it would have destroyed his confidence. The ECB decided to rest him and put him through a intense regime to develop his physical fitness which would enable him to increase his pace and at the same time, develop his bowling without the scrutiny of the media.

The BCCI has left Pathan to rot in the Ranji Trophy where it is very difficult for a swing bowler to capture his best form in conditions which do not favour movement. Pathan could be criticised for not stepping up to perform when given the chance but one must understand that the drop in his confidence is massive and it does take time to get over it.

For the World Cup, Pathan could bowl effective Left arm Medium as the fifth bowler while contributing runs at No. 7. He does not have the ability to excel during the powerplay overs but that is the case with Jadeja and Pathan as well. Also, his sensible batting is what is needed at No. 7 and he does have the ability to change the tempo of the game as well.

In my opinion, Irfan Pathan should have been selected in the 30-man squad to give him an incentive to respond with strong performances which could push him to the doors of selection. However this exclusion is only going to destroy him and this special talent might be one of those cricketers who could not fulfill his potential.

Selection of Michael Beer for third Test after five first-class matches shows the Australian selectors are lurching like a drunk in a dark alley

They could not have picked Shane Warne, although that would have been hilarious. Even their Delphic oracle, Richie Benaud, whom the Australians look to as a source of venerable wisdom in times of trouble, but who now usually restricts himself to brief and impenetrable utterances, was crystal clear about that particular bandwagon. He thought it was a preposterous idea.

But instead of picking Warne, Australia's selectors seem to have listened to him. Warne identified Michael Beer as his choice last week in one of his many columns and – glory be – Beer is in the 12 for Perth, the left-arm spinner's new home.

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It is impossible to ignore the fact that Beer is from St Kilda in Melbourne, Warne's old club. One of the great wizard's virtues is that he is loyal to his roots. He would not be shy about supporting a St Kilda cricketer but even he, and Beer himself, must be flabbergasted by the rapid metamorphosis from grade cricketer in Melbourne one moment to a Perth-based international cricketer the next. In times of stress the English make a cup of tea, the Aussies go for a Beer.

His selection is not quite as astonishing as the recall of Warne would have been. But it is not far behind. Warne may like the notion of a St Kilda boy emulating his route into the Test team after barely any first-class cricket – Beer has had only six first-class outings since his debut on 10 October this year – but the comparisons between the two end there. Beer is an orthodox finger-spinner, not a mystery man. There is not much reason to suspect that he will be any more effective than Xavier Doherty, who played in the first two Tests and was immediately ditched, having given up 306 runs in taking three wickets.

The 26-year-old Beer was never selected for his state team despite regular success in Melbourne grade cricket, where he took 213 wickets in six seasons. This year he moved to Perth and he played against the tourists for Western Australia just over a month ago. He did take five wickets in the match, albeit yielding runs at a rate of five per over. In England's second innings he managed to dismiss Kevin Pietersen, but surely they are not being seduced by that theory again. So Beer becomes the tenth spinner to be chosen since Warne's retirement.

Anyone in pursuit of any echoes of Warne in the latest deliberations of the Australian selectors would do better to focus upon Steve Smith rather than Beer. Smith is only 21, and he played his two Test matches against Pakistan in England last summer. And he has something. There is a sparkle in his eye. He is a brilliant fieldsman, always a good sign. His batting is unorthodox and very 21st century; he stands tall and ready to deliver and he has an excellent eye. In one-day cricket he can whack the ball miles and sometimes he does the same in the longer form of the game.

At this stage in his career, Smith's batting is more advanced than his wrist-spin bowling, though he has just taken eight wickets in a match, for the first time, for New South Wales against South Australia in Sydney. Those eight wickets took his tally to 41 in first-class cricket, which is 25 more than Beer.

In the same match Nathan Hauritz hit his maiden century and took three wickets in the second innings. By all accounts he is bowling much better now. But it seems the selectors have decided that even if Hauritz is the most accomplished and reliable spinner in the country, they do not want him in the team any more. Nor are they so enamoured by the left-arm spinner Steve O'Keefe, who bowled respectably for the A team in Hobart three weeks ago.

Instead the selectors prefer the excitement of trying to pluck magical rabbits out of their hats. Or maybe they cannot cope with any more U-turns, which the recall of Hauritz would represent. They appear to be lurching this way and that like a drunk in a dark alley.

Smith may well be the future, however. Even if Australia lose the Test at Perth, and therefore the Ashes, he will probably be around for the rest of the series. Smith is someone the Channel Nine commentators can salivate over. At least he offers hope. The same may apply to the other recalled youngster, Phil Hughes, the idiosyncratic opening batsman, who was dropped after two Ashes Tests in 2009 and replaced by Shane Watson. (Hughes, by the way, celebrated his recall with a duck in the second innings of New South Wales's Sheffield Shield match with South Australia in Sydney).

Whether Smith is mature enough to sway a Test match is another matter. His leg-breaks have promise, a fair bit of fizz but not much consistency. Smith will definitely play in Perth, batting at six or seven, since the Australian selectors are sending no spare batsmen to the far west. Ricky Ponting does not have the option of playing safe with a specialist batsman at six.

It is not certain how Ponting will arrange his lower order, but he is aware that this an area of great concern. In three completed innings in the first two Tests, the tail have amassed a grand total of 50 runs between them. The final choice will probably be between Beer – who, unlike Hauritz, has yet to suggest that he will be a source of runs down the order (top score so far 24 not out in the current Shield game against Queensland) – and Peter Siddle, the hat-trick hero, who launched Australia's pursuit of the Ashes so spectacularly at the Gabba, but who has not taken a wicket since that first innings in Brisbane.

The process of elimination tells us that Siddle's place is in doubt. Ryan Harris, a bulldozer of a bowler, even if his body has a tendency to rebel against the demands put upon it by a fiercely competitive mind, was Australia's best bowler in Adelaide. So he has to play.

Ben Hilfenhaus's style of bowling can be invaluable in Perth, where it is essential that someone is able to bowl into the wind. The Fremantle Doctor is as reliable as dear old Doctor Finlay. It is not possible to tell exactly when it will arrive but it always comes. The Swan River just beyond the Waca can often be a millpond with dinghies helplessly becalmed but they buzz along as soon as the doctor calls.

It can suit an away-swing bowler to run into that sea breeze, which blows from long leg to wide mid-off when a right-handed batsman is facing at the river end. And usually, if the ball swings, the nicks carry to the slip cordon at the Waca. Hilfenhaus is the likeliest swing bowler in the Australian side and he could therefore be a threat. Moreover, his stock has risen by virtue of not being selected for the Adelaide match. So he has to play, too.

And then, of course, there is Mitchell Johnson, whose prospects have also been enhanced by his absence in Adelaide. There was much caring talk after he was dropped for the first time in his career about the benefits of Mitch going away and clearing his mind. He needed some time to sort his game out. The priorities have changed now. Australia are desperate.

The selectors cannot possibly believe that Johnson's rehabilitation is complete. He has not bowled a competitive ball since Brisbane – to the dismay of Kim Hughes and many others. Instead they are clinging on to his record rather than the evidence of their own eyes. Johnson has taken wickets in clusters in the past. His Test figures match many of the greats. And he is fitter than Doug Bollinger. They are clutching those straws. However, Troy Cooley, Australia's bowling coach, will have worked wonders if he can transform Johnson via a few net sessions at the Waca.

So we are in topsy-turvy territory. The Australians arrive in Perth in the knowledge that defeat means that the Ashes remain with England. For the last three Ashes tours that has been England's predicament and they have been blown away. The wicket at Perth may not be quite so quick as the halcyon days but by the standards of the rest of the world there is enough life for the pace bowlers and more encouragement for the spinner than there used to be.

This Test becomes a pivotal one for the Australians. Lose, and the hue and cry around the country will become deafening. If the Ashes are out of reach then there may be a headlong pursuit for fresh blood. The thirtysomethings, in particular, will be in jeopardy.

Even Ponting, the embodiment of Australia, all cragginess and steel-eyed determination under that fading baggy green, and one of the greatest players ever to represent the country, will be under extreme pressure. There will be those calling for his immediate removal as Test captain if Australia lose. Whether that will include the Australian selectors is hard to gauge. Because no one has a clue what they will come up with next.

• The slow left-armer has taken just 16 first-class wickets
• Australia make four changes for the third Test at the Waca

Australia, trounced in the Adelaide Test and 1-0 down in the Ashes series, have not brought Shane Warne out of retirement, which should bring to an end the year's most nonsensical sports story. But they have done something equally extraordinary: they have responded by giving England the chance to play a Beer Match.

Michael Beer was the third-choice spin bowler for Victoria a year ago and his chances of ever playing first-class cricket were receding, but he moved to Western Australia and now finds himself in Australia's Test 12 on his home ground at the Waca.

Beer is the first Australian spin bowler to be plucked from obscurity for at least two weeks, replacing another slow-left armer, Xavier Doherty, the last player to be unfortunate enough to be asked to look the Warne legend in the eye. The odds are that others will follow until Australian cricket lovers learn to look to the future again.

Australia's squad shows four changes from the side beaten in Adelaide. Simon Katich is out of the rest of the series because of a damaged achilles and Marcus North and Doug Bollinger have also been dropped.

There is a recall for Phillip Hughes, the unconventional New South Wales opener, who has just made four and nought for NSW against South Australia in Sydney, and for Mitchell Johnson, Steve Smith and Ben Hilfenhaus, who all return to the squad after being omitted in Adelaide. Hilfenhaus' ability to bowl into the wind at the Waca could win him selection ahead of Peter Siddle, whose hat-trick at The Gabba now seems a long time ago.

But it is Beer's selection that has stunned Australian cricket. He made his first-class debut exactly two months ago and he has only played four matches at the Waca, where he must now help to prevent an England victory that would retain the Ashes. One of those four games came against England when he took career-best figures of 5-209. He has 16 first-class wickets in his career at a shade under 40 runs each. It is solid, but hardly spectacular.

Beer is a Ponting pick, in as much as Ponting appears not to want Nathan Hauritz anywhere near the side, a stance that could look indefensible if Australia do not turn the series. He is also a Greg Chappell pick, in as much as Australia's first full-time selector is always tempted in adversity by a punt on an unknown.

Allan Border, the captain who sorted out Australia's last crisis a generation ago, said of Beer's selection: "I'm in a state of shock. They might just go with four quickies and just have Beer around the squad."

Andrew Hilditch, Australia's chairman of selectors, hinted that Beer was likely to play. "Michael is a left-arm orthodox spinner who has been very impressive at domestic level this year," he said. "He took wickets against England in the tour match earlier this summer and we expect he will bowl very well against the English on his home ground."

Beer was also favoured by Warne himself, which will encourage him, but which was also much in keeping with Warne's habit of promoting players from within his own clubs. At Hampshire, he wanted Nic Pothas to be England's wicketkeeper, among many others, and swung Michael Lumb an IPL deal with Rajasthan Royals. Now he has advocated a spinner who was Victorian cricket's most successful club bowler last season when he played for Warne's old club, St Kilda.

His selection did have an impact on the Bringbackwarne.com rescue fund, which seeks to induce Warne to come out of retirement and which had languished around AUD$4,500 for most of the morning, but which leapt past AUD$5,000 within an hour of Beer's selection becoming public.

Warne has his own celebrity chat show and is in danger of having to interview himself; Beer is so unknown that he does not even have a statistics page on the Cricket Australia website. At the start of the series he had roughly 30 followers on Twitter, which means that not everybody will be aware that he bagged England midway through the first Test at The Gabba, saying: "The Barmy Army are the only Poms who are performing." He has yet to make his international debut and he has already pulled off the least successful sledge in Australian cricket history.

Australia want Beer to fulfil the holding role that Doherty found beyond him, and if he proves capable then Western Australia's coach, Mickey Arthur, will take much of the acclaim. Arthur has likened Beer to South Africa's slow left-armer, Paul Harris, another spin bowler short of panache who eked out an existence at international level.

"I think our chap Michael Beer is probably one of the best left-arm spinners I have seen in Australia," Arthur said after England's six-wicket win against Western Australia in Perth last month. "Michael Beer, if he were South African, would be pushing quite hard for selection. The role he has played for us through the summer has been exceptional. There are not many spinners who can come on, especially in Perth, and stop a game. He has been able to do that."

Australia squad for third Test, Perth, December 16-20

Ricky Ponting (capt), Shane Watson, Phillip Hughes, Michael Clarke, Michael Hussey, Brad Haddin, Steven Smith, Mitchell Johnson, Ryan Harris, Peter Siddle, Michael Beer, Ben Hilfenhaus.

• Ian Bell hits 121 as England finish day two on 335-5
• Paul Collingwood makes 74 as pair put on 198 for fifth wicket

Ian Bell fine-tuned his Ashes preparations with a classy century on the second day of England's final warm-up match against Australia A in Hobart. On a day where England's batsmen flourished, apart from Kevin Pietersen whose apparent weakness against left-arm spin resurfaced, Bell was the stand-out performer as he finished the day 121 not out.

Much has been made of the right-hander's below-average record against Australia, but he showed he was in good touch to try and rectify that ahead of next week's first Test as he operated with controlled aggression to dominate the home attack.

His innings was even more timely in the context of the match after the tourists had found themselves in a potentially sticky position of 137 for five. But Bell and Paul Collingwood ensured England pushed into a lead of 105 by the close as their 198-run partnership helped the tourists reach 335 for five.

Earlier, Alastair Cook chiselled out 60 to strengthen his position at the top of the order while Jonathan Trott played fluently in adding 41. But while they took full advantage of what is likely to be their last chance in the middle before next week's Brisbane Test, Pietersen's dismissal provided the only negative.

The right-hander went cheaply, in mystifying circumstances, when he accounted for no turn at all from left-arm orthodox bowler Steve O'Keefe and was bowled middle and off-stump - with his defensive bat drawn inside the line - by the merest hint of deviation from round the wicket.

Three England wickets had gone down for the addition of 13 runs at that point after Cook and Trott fell in quick succession after their 87-run stand. Australia A's enthusiasm following those breakthroughs was short-lived, however, as Bell and Collingwood set about dominating the remainder of the day.

Bell was particularly impressive as he stamped his classy strokeplay on proceedings. He was most notably bullish against young leg-spinner Steve Smith, hitting him for three consecutive fours in his opening over before bringing up his half-century from 55 balls with another muscular shot. Collingwood was content to pick his moments to attack, hitting Smith over the midwicket fence to move the tourists to within a run of Australia A's score.

They then set about building a lead with Bell rattling along to his century, his second in Australia, which he fittingly registered with another eye-catching cover drive off Smith.

Earlier, the foot movement Cook insisted he had rediscovered last week was not immediately evident. But he took no chances and correctly identified the pull as his best scoring option. By the time he was in sight of his 50, his repertoire was broadening - and he went down the pitch to chip O'Keefe over midwicket for his sixth four to reach the milestone.

An attempted repeat soon afterwards brought his downfall, though, when he closed the face a little too early and was well caught by Clint McKay at deep mid-on. Trott appeared destined to add a half-century of his own but remains the only member of England's top six without one on this tour after mis-pulling a catch to mid-off - an uncanny near-replay of his embarrassing dismissal in his first innings against South Australia last week.

Pietersen then followed when he played around an O'Keefe delivery and, in so doing, perhaps enhanced the hopes of Australia slow left-armer Xavier Doherty, who has been touted as a possible selection ahead of Nathan Hauritz in Brisbane.

• Nielsen unfazed by choice of Panesar and Tremlett
• 'They're probably more depth players than first choice players'

The Australia coach, Tim Nielsen, has not been surprised by England's selections for the Ashes, saying that he expected Monty Panesar and Chris Tremlett to be named in the squad.

"Height was probably the thing I noticed this morning when I saw the squad," he told AAP. "It was interesting to note they picked 6ft 7in Tremlett and went back to the left-arm orthodox in Panesar.

"They're two things we expected, and in truth they're probably more depth players rather than first selected players. They've gone for guys, one who can spin the ball away from the right-handers and another who they're hoping will make the ball bounce in Australia."

Tremlett is joined in a tall bowling attack by 6ft 2in James Anderson, 6ft 5in Stuart Broad and 6ft 7in Steven Finn.

The Australian side are currently in India, preparing for a two-Test series. "It will give us tremendous warm-up, practice and Test match cricket leading into the Australian summer," said Nielsen.

"It is a pretty big series for us over here – we got beaten 2-0 last time and we've got some players coming over looking to atone for that, and every series we play as a Test match team at the moment with a younger group is really important for our development."

Kevin Pietersen's seemingly cavalier dismissal against Bangladesh's left-arm spinner masks the England batsman's hard work to combat his weakness

There are a host of batsmen out there, timid souls most of them, who have spent their entire career trying to promote a reputation of having a weakness against left-arm spin. But Kevin Pietersen is not among them.

A reputation of being windy against the bouncer is a terrible trial for a cricketer. Every arrival at the crease is marked by a summons to the opposition's fastest bowler, who is encouraged by all and sundry to "wang it around his ears". A perceived weakness against left-arm spinners leads to a far more tranquil life. But Pietersen has rarely craved tranquillity.

When he came to the crease today Shakib Al Hasan did the obvious. Mahmudullah, the off-spinner, was removed immediately from the attack and the captain put himself on. Pietersen may wish to deny it, but his reputation for vulnerability against left‑arm spin is not denied by the figures. In Test cricket he has been dismissed 105 times; on 17 occasions his tormentor has been a left-arm spinner in what can hardly be described as an era blessed with vintage bowlers of that ilk.

Pietersen has been dismissed by Yuvraj Singh, Ryan Hinds and Abdur Razzak (once), by Suliemann Benn and Paul Harris (3x), by Daniel Vettori and Shakib Al Hasan (4x). The last of those dismissals came for 64 when Pietersen was stumped off the Bangladesh captain. He was so far down the pitch when the ball passed his bat there was no point in trying to regain his ground.

So how can we explain England's most gifted batsman being so vulnerable to orthodox, run-of-the-mill left-arm spin? Should we concentrate on technique or temperament?

Pietersen barely played a defensive shot against the left-arm spinners today. But to dismiss this approach as some sort of devil-may-care arrogance is wide of the mark, especially to those who watched him go about his business in Bangladesh last winter.

They tell of a man working away in the nets until dusk, cajoling any eager locals who could propel left-arm spin to bowl at him (England did not have a left-armer on the tour). Pietersen strove hard to overcome his "problem" and though he was only dismissed by left-armers in Bangladesh he scored his quota of runs (250 at an average of 83).

He changed his method substantially in those sessions. Avoidance of being lbw is increasingly important in the modern game, where umpires are unafraid to give batsmen out on the front foot. So Pietersen decided to remain inside the line of the ball. He has always enjoyed scoring a high proportion of his runs on the leg side but against left-armers he now opted to exploit the off side. Giving himself more room than in the past he would look to drive through the covers or cut.

This is how he began his innings today. He was constantly aggressive against the left-armers. Abdur Razzak was lofted over extra-cover and just wide of long off, a superb Twenty20 shot, a more surprising Test match stroke. Pietersen rarely stayed in his crease and soon he also played the pull drive through the leg side. It was highly entertaining to watch, but it was hardly clinical.

Then down he came the pitch to Shakib; the ball turned a lot – but it is allowed to do that – and the stranded Pietersen swiped, missed, tucked his helmet under his arm and headed for the pavilion. It was an exasperating dismissal. In the Test Match Special commentary box Geoffrey Boycott guffawed. He did not wander so far from his crease on his holidays. A cast-iron century had been frittered away.

It was not a stroke that demanded any great technical analysis. Instead we all wondered why the devil he should play it. One of Pietersen's charms is that he shuns the mundane. The sneaked single (unless he is on nought) does not interest him much. His quest is to assert his authority. Opposition bowlers must be subjugated not survived.

No modern batsman likes hitting boundaries as much as Pietersen. He needs them to fuel his hunger for batting. This was highlighted by his explanation for reverse sweeping Muttiah Muralitharan for six at Edgbaston in 2006: "Well, it was the only place I could see to hit a boundary." Such an approach will exasperate coaches, captains and pundits now and again; it will also keep them rolling through the turnstiles.

Television replays have made lbw calls far more likely in today's game, with spin bowlers the main beneficiaries

The 21st century was supposed to be the death-knell for the orthodox finger-spinner. In a decade when big bats could mishit sixes and yet boundaries shrunk, the accepted wisdom has been that a slow bowler has to be "mysterious" to succeed at Test level.

Shane Warne and Muttiah Muralitharan, both geniuses, led the way, with the likes of Danish Kaneria and Ajantha Mendis in their wake. The feeling was that it was barely worth playing a finger-spinner in the team, unless he could bat and even then his chief function in the field was to give the faster men some breathing space.

And yet Graeme Swann is the second highest wicket-taker (after Mitchell Johnson) in Test cricket throughout this calendar year. After taking three more in Durban he has 49 to his name. This is mainly because Swann is much better than we thought. "Another competent yet unremarkable dodo of an English off-spinner" was the general view when he was recalled to international cricket after a 10-year exile.

Swann's bowling rarely reflects the bubbly personality that can no more resist a one-liner than a cat can the cream. He is the canniest of bowlers, who recognises all the angles and who understands the nuances of a seemingly minor field change. On the first day he moved his short extra cover to saving the single behind square leg when bowling to Graeme Smith. Then he opted to bowl straighter at the South Africa captain, who was subsequently becalmed. Swann also recognises the tedious yet vital quality of accuracy. He has bowled very few bad balls in this series.

Andrew Strauss has become heavily reliant on Swann now that he has opted for a four-man attack. But today Strauss's gratitude to Swann was excessive. This must be the reason why he kept the off-spinner on for so long during the last-wicket partnership that seemed to tip the match in South Africa's favour.

In his last four overs Swann yielded 32 runs, 18 of them came from mighty drives for six from the middle of Dale Steyn's bat. Swann had done his job. Strauss should have taken him off earlier even though it's not too difficult to imagine the off-spinner saying: "Don't worry, skip, I'll get him next over." Swann's "mystique" had temporarily been obliterated.

Steyn demonstrated with some style how far the modern bat can hit the ball, but today also showed how TV technology can be an aid to the spinner. In the 21st century umpires are far more likely to give lbws to batsmen, who have been struck on the front pad. The ever-more refined replays have shown when the ball is fulfilling all the criteria.

In the past maverick umpires in county cricket would raise the finger almost as a matter of principle. Certain umpires detested the sweep shot and this was especially the case if they were spinners in their playing days.

Thus dear old Sam Cook, the Gloucestershire left-armer tormented by batsmen who plonked their front foot down the wicket before swinging across the line when he was bowling, would, as an umpire, dispatch sweeping batsmen to the pavilion without a scintilla of hesitation. They deserved to go for playing such a hideous shot. Whether the ball was hitting the stumps seemed a secondary consideration for Sam. If the same delivery had hit the batsman playing a decorous forward defensive, the decision was, of course, "not out".

This anomaly is now disappearing. Spinners get lbws against batsmen defending on the front foot far more regularly now thanks not only to the review system but also the examination of the tapes by the umpires. For England Monty Panesar and Swann have been beneficiaries.

I've yet to encounter an old bowler who doesn't think he would have harvested more lbws in this era. That would certainly have been the case for Fred Titmus, driven to distraction by Australian umpires in 1974-75. "Front foot, mate."

The Guardian's cricket correspondent, whom some batsmen had the temerity to play off the front foot, is confident he would have been even more prolific in this era. So, too, does the Observer's.