Five batsmen who invented innovative shots

The stereotypical image of cricket evokes tradition, class and a stately pace. However, It is equally true that as time has passed, the game has evolved drastically.

From limited overs' cricket to colored clothing, from carrom balls to reverse sweeps, cricket has been enriched by innovations.

We take a look at some great batsmen who invented cricket shots that have entered the annals of the game and become part of the global repertoire of stroke-making.

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#5 Ranjit Sinhji

The Ranji Trophy was named after him

The grandfather of Indian cricket, Ranjit Sinhji has had the Ranji trophy named after him. Ranji, as he was popularly known, was a king, both in his style and lineage.

Sinhji is, to this day, regarded as one of the greatest batsmen to have played the game and was called by noted cricket writer Neville Cardus as the 'midsummer night's dream of cricket".

Ranji played Test cricket for England and first-class cricket for both Cambridge and Sussex. His inclusion in this list is inevitable as he was the most inventive batsman of his time and is credited with coming up with the most delicate cricketing shot possible, the leg glance; the push off the hips to a faster ball that runs off to the boundary with the minimum effort.

#4 Mushtaq Mohammed

Mohammed was a proficient leg-spinner as well

The stylish all-rounder had a long career in the 60s and 70s and even captained Pakistan in a few Tests.

Mushtaq comes from a long legacy of cricketers, with his elder brothers Wazir and Haneef also having played Tests for Pakistan successfully.

He scored 10 Test hundreds for Pakistan and was also a proficient leg-spinner who took 79 Test wickets.

Mohammed is credited with bringing the unconventional and extremely difficult reverse sweep into currency (though some believe his elder brother Haneef invented it).

This shot is now part and parcel of modern day cricket and its aggressive nature but Mushtaq made it a part of his repertoire way back in the '60s.

#3 Tilakaratne Dilshan/Douglas Marillier

Dilshan introduced the Dilscoop in the 2009 ICC World T20

As cricketers, they are as different as possible. Douglas Marillier only played 48 ODIs and made only one ODI century.

Tilakaratne Dilshan is, on the other hand, one of the most decorated cricketers of Sri Lanka. However, they count as one batsman here because they both popularised the astounding paddle shot where you lift the ball behind the wicketkeeper, to the fine leg boundary.

Marllier destroyed India in one memorable innings where the shot featured prominently, Dilshan used the Dilscoop to wreak havoc for years.

#2 Kevin Pietersen

Pietersen used the switch hit to devastating effect

The world was left gaping when Kevin Pietersen first used it against the wily legend, Muttiah Muralitharan.

Yes, you got that right, I am talking about the switch hit. While anecdotal evidence suggests Jonty Rhodes first played the shot in an ODI, only Pietersen can be called the true inventor of this astounding shot where a right-handed batsman becomes a leftie for a second, and vice versa, before launching it into the stands.

Pietersen was a brilliant international batsman despite all his controversies and the switch hit is the proof; David Warner and co. will acknowledge his contribution to the shot.

#1 Sachin Tendulkar

Sachin Tendulkar had the full range of shots

Some argue that the uppercut was around a long time before Sachin Tendulkar made it his own.

They might be right, but Tendulkar's craft while using it truly makes him the inventor of the modern uppercut where the ball doesn't stay on the ground but sails over the third man boundary.

Not only for records is he arguably the greatest to pick up a cricket bat.