OTD | New Zealand player Kyle Mills was born today in 1979

Former New Zealand fast bowler Kyle Mills is celebrating his 45th birthday today. For a long time, he was one of the prime bowlers for the Blackcaps, particularly in the limited-overs format. His height gave him an edge as his point of delivery was a lot higher. Kyle Mills was an important part of the squad when New Zealand was evolving into a competitive side. 

He made his international debut in 2001 against Pakistan in an ODI match at Sharjah. In his second One-Day international game against Sri Lanka, he picked up three wickets and introduced himself to international cricket. He soon became a regular part of the Kiwi bowling attack in One-Day cricket. Looking at his impressive performances in white-ball cricket, the management decided to hand over the Test cap to him. 

Mills made his Test debut in 2004 against England on an away tour. Unlike his ODI career, he did not get instant success in Test cricket and struggled to settle in the toughest format of the game. The fast bowler also represented New Zealand in T20I cricket. His T20I career started in 2005 when he played his maiden T20 international against Australia. 

A white-ball specialist

Kyle Mills proved to be more effective in white-ball cricket. He only played 19 Test matches for New Zealand in which he picked up 44 wickets at an average of 33.02. However, his record in ODI cricket is a lot more impressive. In 170 ODIs he registered 240 wickets to his name at an impactful average of 27.02. 

Whereas, in T20I cricket he played 42 matches. In the shortest format of the game, he had 43 wickets in his account. Kyle Mills played his last international game in 2015 against Pakistan. He remained the prime bowling option for his team until his retirement and bid farewell to the game after a successful international career.