5 times a batter made headlines for switching hands while batting ft. David Warner
David Warner grabbed everyone's attention during the second ODI of the ongoing series between Australia and India. Warner generally bats left-handed. However, when off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin came to bowl, Warner switched hands and batted as a right-hander.
Warner is one of the few cricketers in the world who can bat properly as a left-hander as well as a right-hander. Fans would have observed that he can hit boundaries while batting right-handed as well.
This is not the first time a batter has switched hands while batting. Here's a list of five other instances.
#1 David Warner bats like a right-handed batter in BPL match
Cricket Australia banned David Warner from all formats of international cricket for 12 months for his involvement in a ball-tampering scandal. During that ban, Warner decided to play in almost every T20 league he could.
He joined the Sylhet Sixers for the 2018–19 Bangladesh Premier League season. While facing Chris Gayle's off-spin during a match, Warner switched into a right-handed batter after failing to score runs off Gayle as a left-hander. He ended up scoring three consecutive boundaries as a right-handed batter.
#2 David Warner turns a right-hander for a free hit
During the IPL 2023 season, David Warner switched hands once again. Playing against the Mumbai Indians, the Delhi Capitals captain decided to switch hands for a free hit against MI spinner Hrithik Shokeen.
Warner ended up wasting the free hit as he could not time the ball from Shokeen to perfection. He only took one run off the free hit in that over.
#3 Glenn Maxwell practices as a left-handed batter
Unlike David Warner, Glenn Maxwell has not switched hands while standing to face a ball but has switched from a right-hander to a left-hander after the bowler releases the ball. He has hit boundaries using reverse lap shots and reverse sweeps.
Before the India vs Australia T20I series last year, Maxwell even practiced as a left-handed batter in the practice session at the Punjab Cricket Association Stadium.
#4 Manan Bashir switches hands after completing his 100
European cricket has become quite popular in the 2020s. Fans regularly watch the T10 competitions between the club teams in Europe. During an ECS series earlier this year, Manan Bashir grabbed the fans' attention by switching hands.
Bashir completed his century while batting right-handed. When he reached 107* off 34 balls, he turned left-handed, but he could not time the ball perfectly.
#5 Joe Root turns into a left-handed batter
England visited Pakistan late last year for an ICC World Test Championship series. The pitches offered for the series were quite flat, and batters scored heaps of runs in that series. Bowlers had to work hard to achieve success.
During the fourth day's play in the first Test match at the Pindi Cricket Stadium, leg-spinner Zahid Mahmood tried to trouble England's Joe Root by bowling in the rough. Root smartly switched into a left-handed batter to tackle the leg spin.
Root swept Mahmood over the mid-wicket region. The England batters managed a single off that ball.