Burgey
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Hayden's been doing it for 5-6 years, tbh. And an old codger like McGrath has never broken his ribYeah, that's definitely a fair comment. Also adds weight to the argument that statistics only tell half the story (if that).
I don't know enough about batting technique to say if Pietersen's all round technical ability is up there with the best or not, but I have never seen anyone take such a big stride down the wicket and dominate fast bowlers in the way that he does. There's something quite mesmeric about watching him willingly walk down the trackt towards a guy hurling a hard red ball at him at close to 90mph and spearing it through the midwicket region.
I think Pietersen suffers in some quarters coz he's not a classical looking batsman. He's tall, and a tall guy playing the same shot as a more compact player can sometimes look gangly or awkward by comparison (all things such as this being relative). His cover drive looks great but you wouldn't say he's a Gower or M Waugh as a sweet timer - not that there are many of them, but you catch my drift - more a bludgeoner of the ball. Yet he's damn effective and is England's best batsman by the length of thr straight with a leg in the air. His technique, when you break it down, is really pretty good, but it just doesn't look as good as some others. Look at Dravid playign a defensive shot and it's out of the text book. Look at KP and it's not as elegant, but when the ball hits bat the head is still, the balance is there and there isn't often a gap between bat and pad.
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