
A refusal to be dominated
Despite the situation, Pietersen refused to be dominated. Like a bad boy who doesn’t learn his lessons, he constantly hustled the Kiwi bowlers. Such is his agility and impetuousness that he was constantly trying out ways to score runs. Often he would meet the ball outside the line and swat or tap it into an empty spot. If a spot was plugged, he would improvise to find the gap left by the plug.
He is constantly thinking, this guy. You could see it in his eyes, constantly darting around as if trying to find answers to the many questions the bowlers raised today. If you tried hard, you could have heard his brain ticking.
Power and Competitiveness
Pietersen heavily favors the leg side in his shot production. He has an unconventional defense, but he makes up for it with hand-eye coordination, a lot of power from his shoulders and forearms and that big stride that allows him to play well forward or shimmy down to take the bowlers on the rise.
Sometimes he isn’t the prettiest to watch – especially when he resorts to those cross-batted swipes. But to call him arrogant would be a mistake. He genuinely enjoys taking on the bowlers. He is hyper-competitive. And you can see it in the way the bowlers respond to him – when they run up to deliver the ball to him, they do so on edge.
Almost every English player played the bowler and then the wicket today. Pietersen was the only top order bat who played the situation. And it was hugely absorbing to watch.
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