'It should be banned completely' - Scott Styris joins Ravi Ashwin on switch-hit debate

A few days after Indian veteran spinner Ravichandran Ashwin emphasized the fact that a batter should be given out LBW if he/she misses while playing the switch hit, former New Zealand all-rounder Scott Styris has called for a ban on the shot.

As per the current rules, a batter would not be given out leg-before wicket if the ball pitches outside the leg stump, even if it is hitting him or her on the pads in line. The former Kiwi player also agreed with Ashwin’s point, but he also disagreed with the solutions he suggested. Styris also went on to say that there is nothing wrong with the LBW law.

I completely disagree with him: Ravi Ashwin

“Well, I sort of gotta go back half a step here. I loved a lot of the points that Ashwin made. I completely disagreed with all his solutions. I actually think even though we just had some fun with the switch hit, I think the switch hit should be banned completely. There are rules for captains and bowlers in terms of where their fieldsmen can be, how many behind point, how many on the leg side, all of these things,” Scott Styris said in an exclusive interview with Sports18.

“So, I don’t think a batsman should be able to change his hands over and I don’t believe he should be able to change his feet. You can play the reverse sweep or the reverse hit if you like but I don’t like this. In terms of the hands, Kevin Pietersen has completely flipped around as a lefthander. If you take away the switch hit, but allow all the reverse sweeps and reverse hits, then I think you don’t have to worry about the LBW law that Ashwin is talking about. And it allows a fair contest between the bowler and the batsman as well.” Styris further added.