England laughing at Kevin Pietersen's audacity
"Pietersen's six over long-on, or long-off as it was before he 'switched', was phenomenal
George Binoy
25-Feb-2013
"Pietersen's six over long-on, or long-off as it was before he 'switched', was phenomenal. We've seen him play it in the nets, but to catch it so sweetly after Scott Styris had spotted him coming and bowled a slower ball was something else. Up in the dressing-room, we were laughing in disbelief at the sheer audacity of it all," writes Alastair Cook in the Telegraph.
There has been a big debate about whether the shot should be outlawed, but that's daft. Pietersen's innings was a fantastic spectacle, and it's not as if everyone is going to start switch-hitting; it's too difficult. I can't hit the ball that far from my usual stance, let alone right-handed. Reverse-sweeps have been around for donkey's years. Suddenly everyone has started talking about them, just because one person has become so good at the shot that he has redefined the coaching manual. But I can't see a case for changing the rules. Why would you want to penalise excellence?
George Binoy is an assistant editor at ESPNcricinfo