Kevin Pietersen lies on the floor as he takes evasive action to Sreesanth's beamer at Trent Bridge © Getty Images Enlarge

Kevin Pietersen has admitted that he feared for his safety when Sreesanth sent down a beamer during the second Test at Trent Bridge. It was one of a number of incidents during a highly-charged match, which India won by seven wickets to take a 1-0 series lead.

Pietersen was batting on the fourth afternoon when Sreesanth, who struggled for his rhythm throughout the game, let go a beamer which flew past Pietersen's head as the batsman managed to sway out of the way. A few overs later an unsettled Pietersen was trapped lbw, padding up, by RP Singh.

"I was shaken up on a cricket pitch for the first time in my life at Trent Bridge and I'm not too proud to admit it," Pietersen said in his News of the World column. "I thought the beamer that Sreesanth bowled at me was going to take my head off.

"People say that sport is not a matter of life and death, but for a few seconds there I thought my number was up. Luckily, I just managed to get out of the way but I ended up in a heap on the pitch thinking 'that could have killed me'.

"I was not physically shaking or throwing up, but it definitely unsettled me mentally and that has never happened before. I'm a lucky boy to have quick reflexes otherwise I could have been a goner."