Cricket KP given license

Kevin Pietersen will be allowed to carry on playing his extraordinary 'reverse slog-sweep' or 'switch-hit' after Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), cricket's rule-makers, announced they would not be outlawing the shot."MCC believes that the 'switch-hit' stroke is exciting for the game of cricket," said a statement issued by MCC following a meeting at it's Lord's headquarters in London on Tuesday."Indeed, the stroke conforms to the Laws of Cricket and will not be legislated against."Pietersen, who effectively became a left rather than right-handed batsman when using the shot to twice hit New Zealand medium-pacer Scott Styris for six during an unbeaten century in England's opening one-day international win at the Riverside on Sunday, welcomed the ruling."I am very pleased by the MCC's decision and I think it's the right one not just for me or England but the game as a whole," Pietersen, training at Edgbaston where the second one-day international of a five-match series takes place on Wednesday, said in an England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) statement."It's important that we as players are innovative and if this shot helps make cricket more exciting and entertaining for spectators then that has to be good for the sport."Styris, the man on the receiving end, also had no problems with Pietersen's shot-making."Sometimes you've just got to take your hat off and say 'well-played'," he said ahead of New Zealand's training session at Edgbaston. "We all admire good cricket and I think that's exactly what it was."Some critics branded Pietersen's shot 'unfair' because bowlers, unlike batsmen, have to inform the umpire with which hand they will be delivering the ball and from which side of the wicket or risk being penalised."I don't agree with the argument that it is unfair on the bowlers," Pietersen said."It's an extremely high risk shot and there will be plenty of bowlers out there who will think it gives them a great opportunity to get me out," added Pietersen, whose reverse sixes were the highlights of an innings of 110 not out, which propelled England to a 114-run victory.And Styris said: "The shot came off for him because he was well set, so if it keeps coming off for him, great, but if it doesn't and we get a wicket we'll be happy."Meanwhile Graeme Swann, an England teammate of Pietersen's, was still trying to come to terms with the nerve of the South Africa-born batsman."The sheer audacity of Kev is what I liked most about it, it was laughable," said the off-spinner. "The fact he pulled it off was just pure KP."I'm sure there will be other people trying it but I'm willing to bet my bottom dollar that there's no-one else in the world who can do it like Kev did on Sunday."Swann added: "I practised it today (Tuesday) but mine didn't go quite as far as Kev's."I ended up hitting the floor, tripping over and pirouetting on a length."MCC played down suggestions of unfairness in the 'switch-hit' by saying that "while bowlers must inform umpires and batsmen of their mode of delivery, they do not provide a warning of the type of delivery that they will bowl (for example, an off-cutter or a slower ball)."However, MCC accepted that consequences remained for both the interpretation of the lbw and wide rules by a batsman attempting a 'switch-hit', saying that they would "continue to research and discuss these implications".