TRUST KP TO SHOW ROOT TO REVIVAL

Joe turns on the style as he follows in the footsteps of flamboyant Pietersen

- MIKE WALTERS

KEVIN PIETERSEN didn't invent Bazball but he was the England batsman who set the bar high for outrageous audacity.

After watching Joe Root carry the fight to Australia's bowlers in the gutwrenching first Ashes Test defeat at Edgbaston, he said: "It's so refreshing to see an England team with an approach that is completely free-spirited."

On the same ground, 17 years ago, Pietersen unfurled his most flamboyant trick shot of all, switch-hitting Sri Lankan spin demon Muttiah Muralitharan for six.

And his fearless repertoire included:

• Taking on 95mph Brett Lee with a baseball-style Babe Ruth 'home run'.
• The 'flamingo' whipped through midwicket off one leg.
• Hoisting England's Ashes nemesis Glenn McGrath for a straight six into the Lord's pavilion on his debut.

If KP didn't originate all those shots then he rewrote the mindset required to play them.