5 times Kevin Pietersen rescued England across formats

#1 79 – vs Zimbabwe, Cape Town T20 2007

In the World T20 2007, Kevin Pietersen smacked 79 at double the pace, with the format turning to be child's play for him

Brief Scores: England 188/9 in 20 overs (Pietersen 79, Collingwood 37; Chigumbura 4/31) beat Zimbabwe 138/7 in 20 overs (Taylor 47, Sibanda 29; Mascarenhas 3/18) by 50 runs

Zimbabwe were on a high having knocked Australia over in their first match of the World T20 in 2007 and a win would have assured them of a place in the Super Eights. England, on their part, were playing their first game and had landed in trouble at 51/3. But by then, Pietersen had already begun with his masterful knock of 79 from merely 37 balls, and then added 100 with captain Paul Collingwood for the fourth wicket.

In exactly nine overs, the pair had resurrected England's innings, in which Pietersen smacked 7 fours and 4 sixes, as they ended on 188/9. Zimbabwe gave England a scare with the opening pair stitching 74 inside nine overs, but once Vusimusi Sibanda was dismissed, they fell apart to manage only 138/7. Pietersen was the Man of the Match, and the format would turn out to be a child's play for the adventurous batsman.