Thursday, 22nd February 2007 at 3:33 pm

Duncan Fletcher uncut

He may coach England, but the man who famously captained Zimbabwe to victory over Australia in the 1983 World Cup, and later coached Western Province, still counts Cape Town as home, and (for a few days at least) he’s back in the Mother City, catching his breath after several months in Australia, and preparing to head off to the World Cup.

Despite not having much time off, Fletcher dropped in on a fundraising dinner in Cape Town on Wednesday night, where he joined Gary Kirsten on a panel fielding questions on the game of cricket. Much interesting debate on the Australians, dealing with the English media (the single biggest deterrent to taking the England job), and the role of the coach in international cricket.

Of greatest interest, however - and he fascinates South Africans, much like Britney Spears does America, say - was Kevin Pietersen. Fletcher’s thoughts on the first man ever to make a one-day international hundred with a skunk surgically attached to his head? “One of the most dedicated cricketers I’ve come across, who prepares incredibly,” Fletch’s response, detailing the way KP sets himself goals and targets, spends hours watching opposition bowlers, and places his own game under intense scrutiny.

Fletch also shared thoughts on Shane Warne (”the most astute cricketing brain I’ve come across”), Monty Panesar’s role with England (”modern teams need to be able to bat down to number eight”), and his own future, a subject he was deliberately candid about. He did suggest that he’d like to be in the England job for the 2009 Ashes, although he’ll only know post-World Cup; the unasked question was whether Fletch has given thought to coaching South Africa, but with a house in Cape Town, and a long history with this part of the world, the odds on it happening sooner or later have to be pretty good.

• Also: read former Wisden editor Tim de Lisle’s less than enthusiastic appreciation of South Africa’s new place at the top of the one-day pile.