Steve Harmison goes into today's final Test of the season with a vote of confidence from new England captain Kevin Pietersen behind him. But this week is likely to be the Durham man's last chance to resurrect his international career.

Five months ago, former skipper Michael Vaughan lost patience with him after a woeful performance against New Zealand in Hamilton - and that might have been it if South Africa had not come here this summer and won the npower series with a match to spare.

But, having made the squad though not the team at Edgbaston, Harmison has been identified as a potential trump card by Pietersen as he attempts to launch his leadership reign with a victory at The Brit Oval.

Vaughan's successor asked him to take the new ball on a ground where he has enjoyed plenty of success before, saying: "Steve is buzzing, absolutely buzzing. I'm going to place some responsibility on him, and the big man will deliver." Harmison needs to live up to that prediction, and help England at least end this series on a high note, to prevent one of Pietersen's first big decisions from rebounding on him and to convince the doubters that he still has plenty to offer at the age of 29.

"For England it is about making decisions not only for this Test but also when they go to India later this year and then the Ashes," suggested South Africa captain Graeme Smith. "If they're going to pick Steve Harmison now they obviously have a plan for him to play in the next Ashes series - at least I hope that's what they would be thinking."

So would Harmison. But a poor performance here - at a venue where he has taken 18 wickets at 24 runs apiece in four previous Tests - will see a line, in indelible ink, put through his name.

For the moment, though, Pietersen can see nothing but positives. England have managed to score 400 first innings runs in only one of their last 15 Tests, yet the bullish skipper believes playing five batsmen at The Oval will give his top order a challenge to thrive on.

Ian Bell is keen to prove himself at No3, so Pietersen has put him there. And he believes that moving Andrew Flintoff to his old position of No6 - even though the all-rounder has been struggling for runs - could not be better timed.

Optimism should never be knocked. But, as Smith could tell him, the best laid plans do not always work out just right. In fact, although Pietersen may not like to admit it, he can learn a lot from his opposite number this week.

Pietersen and Smith will never be on much more than nodding terms because too many insults have been traded over the years. Simply by looking and listening, though, England's new No1 can pick up a few tips and perhaps avoid some pitfalls.

"I would think there is a mutual respect in terms of performance - that's basically as far as it goes, I guess," said Smith when asked to sum up the current state of his relationship with Pietersen.

The pair fell out over Pietersen's comments about the quota system in South African cricket but Pietersen must recognise that the person he shakes hands with at today's toss has become a skipper of real quality - and someone worth taking note of.

Smith reckons the real challenges for Pietersen will present themselves not this week but down the line. And, given that he took charge of his country at the age of just 22, after playing only eight Tests, and is still in charge 61 games later, he should know what he is talking about.

"He won't experience too much of the pressure right now," said Smith.

"It's the next couple of series when he's really going to understand what it's all about. - running a team and getting a team to play for you.

"He's got a one-off Test against us and he will feel excited, nervous and hugely motivated. He'll obviously have a lot of energy in this game. But it's about sustaining it for a period of time.

"It's easy making one-off decisions when you feel it doesn't really matter what happens in this Test. In six months time, that's when it starts to show.

"It's going to be interesting when he's thrown a lot of curve balls. As captain you have to have an open mind because there are so many different things to challenge you on any given day. It's not only about your own performance. And that's going to be his challenge."

The one question everyone wants answered when it comes to KP the captain is whether extra responsibility will change his batting - especially when he's on 94 and his team are still in trouble,as at Edgbaston last week.

"One thing I will say is that I think captaincy will make him think about that now," was Smith's considered response.