Hampshire ace Kevin Pietersen checked out of his one-man '158 club' with a maiden Test double hundred.

That has helped to put England on course for a landslide win over West Indies, though rain at Headingley today has kept Pietersen and co off the field on the third day.

The South Africa-born batsman faced a challenge for the headlines yesterday from Ryan Sidebottom, who took six wickets in what used to be his own back yard.

The upshot of Pietersen's 226 in England's 570 for seven declared and left-arm seamer Sidebottom's match figures of six for 54 so far was that West Indies still trail by 402, on 22 for two in their second innings after following on.

While Yorkshireman Sidebottom was able to reflect on a dream 'homecoming' of his own - after Michael Vaughan had made a hundred in his first Test in 18 months on Friday - - Pietersen had the satisfaction of bettering 158 for the first time.

That bizarre 'bogey' career best had stumped him three times at this level - starting with his maiden Test ton in the Ashes-winning fifth Test against Australia at The Oval in September 2005 - and he was determined it would not happen again.

"I was very happy to get past it," he said, having begun yesterday with an unbeaten 130 to his name already.

"On 156, I was definitely having a go at something. I wasn't going to go 157, 158 - I was going to try to go past with a boundary".

In the end, a cut for four did the job - one of 24 boundaries, and two sixes, in a 226-ball stay which encompassed a sixth-wicket stand of 160 with Matthew Prior (75).

Pietersen, who was eventually last out for the highest individual Test score by an English batsman for 17 years - since Graham Gooch's 333 against India at Lord's in 1990 - is delighted to have proved to himself and others that he can really 'go big'.

"It's something I've been criticised for, not getting big scores - something everybody thinks I should be doing regularly," he said.

"But it was there for me to build an innings. That's what I concentrated on and what I wanted to do".

The innings of 226 was Pietersen's second highest score in first class cricket - and his fourth double century.

His first double ton was 218 not out for Notts against Derbyshire at Derby in July 2001 - his first season in English county cricket.

He added an unbroken 372 for the sixth wicket with ex-England batsman John Morris (136 no) thanks to a 255-ball innings spanning 291 minutes and containing 23 fours and nine sixes.

Pietersen's highest first class score remains the unbeaten 254 he blundgeoned against Middlesex at Trent Bridge in August 2002.

He struck his runs off just 252 balls with 31 fours and three sixes.

With Australian leg-spinner Stuart MacGill taking 14 wickets in the match, Notts won by an innings.

Pietersen's third double century in the county championship was his 221 off 270 balls in June 2003 against Warwickshire at Edgbaston. He hit 27 fours and four sixes in that innings.