OTD| New Zealand’s destructive opening batter Colin Munro was born in 1987

The swashbuckling left-handed New Zealand opener Colin Munro is celebrating his 37th birthday today. He is one of the most destructive big hitters in the game. Power is an important component of his game but it is not just the brute power that makes him dangerous. His game awareness is another asset that makes him such a feared opponent. 

Colin Munro received his maiden call-up in 2012 when the New Zealand team was set to tour South Africa. He got the opportunity to make his debut in international cricket in the T20I series on that tour. In the series opener, he played his first international match and it was an impressive debut for him as he scored 23 runs off 18 balls. 

The left-hander soon got his Test cap when he played his maiden Test against South Africa. It was the first and the only Test match that he played in his entire Test career. The tour progressed towards the ODI series and Colin Munro was in the plans in the 50-over format as well. He made his ODI debut in the second match of the ODI series. 

Brutal smasher

Colin Munro is one of the most sought-after players in the T20 leagues across the globe. His power game is one the biggest assets that any player could wish for. The Kiwi left-hander can hit the ball out of the park at his will. In international cricket, he has mainly represented New Zealand in limited-overs formats. He has played 57 ODIs and 65 T20Is in his decade-long international career. 

Munro has had decent success in international cricket although fans would have loved to see more consistent performances from him. The left-hander has 1271 runs in his account in ODIs whereas, in T20I cricket his run-scoring tally stands at 1724 runs. He played his last international match for New Zealand in 2020 but continues to be an important player in the global franchise league circuit.