Watch: Kevin Pietersen’s “Switch Hit” Reverses Time in Delhi’s Streets

Although switch hits are now commonplace, there was a period when they caused controversy and division in the cricket community. Before others warmed up to it, Kevin Pietersen was the first batter to introduce that shot to the international stage, and it quickly became inextricably linked with him.

In order to control the field and choose gaps, the shot requires the hitter to quickly go from a right-handed to a left-handed stance, or vice versa.

While enjoying some downtime with the locals in Delhi, where he is now playing in the IPL, Pietersen played the switch hit.

The legendary player from England posted a video on Instagram where he can be seen performing the switch hit, reminding fans of the famous shot.

This afternoon in Delhi, we’re switch-hitting! The one cricket hit that always makes me grin, no matter who plays it,” the Englishman captioned the photo.

Pietersen used the switch hit for the first time in a Test match against Sri Lanka in 2006. He hit the incredible shot against Muttiah Muralitharan, the great spinner. It got contentious when some experts proposed banning it because it offered hitters an unfair edge.

Following England’s 2008 victory over New Zealand in an ODI, Kevin Pietersen, who was 28 at the time, justified his decision to play the contentious switch hit against Scott Styris.

That is absurd. Completely foolish. For whatever long, the reverse-sweep has been a feature of the game. Kevin Pietersen said, “I am simply lucky that I can hit it a little bit further. “Everyone is in search of fresh concepts, innovations, and photographs. People need to be saying it’s a new method to go because that’s a new shot that was played today. People shouldn’t be constantly criticizing cricket since new things are occurring in the sport right now, he remarked.

Pietersen had an incredible international career, participating in 104 Tests, 136 ODIs, and 37 T20Is. In all forms, he has amassed 13,297 runs, and he played for England in the 2010 T20 World Cup.