Pietersen says cool heads must prevail after WACA defeat, admitting he was stirring Ricky Ponting when he suggested mass changes were needed
KP warns Aussies not to panic after Perth loss
Kevin Pietersen has warned Australia not to panic and make knee-jerk reactions in the wake of the team's 177-run defeat in the opening Commonwealth Bank Test against South Africa.
The current captain of the Australia team wasn't even born when the home side last lost the first Test of the summer and with at least two changes coming to the Australia XI because of injury, the former England batsman says cool heads must prevail.
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"The one thing you can't do is make drastic changes after one Test loss," Pietersen told Optus Sport at a promotional shoot in Melbourne on Tuesday.
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"A lot of people are talking about there's instability in the dressing room, they're talking about changes from the coach to the high performance team.
"But I don't think Australia should panic.
"I think Australia should stick with what they've got. Because I don't think there is a lot better than what they've got right now.
"Don't stress, don't do anything too drastic, just live this out for a couple of weeks, see where you get to, then you can go back to the drawing board."
Pietersen said it was important to not forget Australia "actually had one day of very, very good Test cricket" before a remarkable turnaround from South Africa.
Having bowled South Africa out for 242, Australia were seemingly cruising a 0-158 before David Warner edged Dale Steyn to the slips cordon on 97. Yet from that position of strength, they added just 86 more to be all out for 244.
Compounding the batting collapse, South Africa then put on 8dec-540, inspired by centuries to JP Duminy (147) and Dean Elgar (127), as well as fifties to Quinton de Kock and Vernon Philander.
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Pietersen, speaking after the match on British broadcaster BT Sport, initially claimed the defeat was "a humungous disaster" and there could be "eight or nine changes" for the second Test.
It prompted a staggered Ricky Ponting, in BT Sports' UK studio, to label Pietersen "ridiculous".
But the former England batsman revealed that was exactly the reaction he was after.
"It was tongue in cheek (to suggest nine changes), because I knew Punter was in the box and he'd have something to say, (so it was) just to rile him a little bit, the patriotic great leader that he was," Pietersen said Tuesday.
"I came off my long run saying eight or nine changes. Nonsense. A couple of changes maybe but don't stress too much and don't do anything too drastic.
"Because then the players coming in think 'Oh my goodness, they can chop and change after one Test match, imagine if I fail'.
"So you want to give a little bit of a run to certain key players, but there is a cloud hanging over a couple."
Ponting said the Australian dressing room did need to do some serious soul searching before the second Test, starting Saturday in Hobart.
"They need to think about the way they played," Ponting said on BT Sport.
"They've all got proven records, and it's not just over a couple of games either.
"They didn't play well this week, they've got to find a way to turn up next week, get their minds in the right space, and turn out and play a good game."