The two mainstays in the Kings XI Punjab’s ever-changing lineup over the years had been David Miller and Shaun Marsh.
The two swashbuckling southpaws served well for the Ness Wadia and Preity Zinta co-owned franchise over the years. Miller is fondly remembered for his 38-ball ton against Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in IPL 2013.
KXIP was looking at a probable defeat after quickly losing a huge chunk of their batting, chasing a stiff total of 190. ‘Killer Miller’, however, had other ideas as he shepherded his side to victory with his carnage. RCB went on to concede 99 in the final five overs of the match.
The South African limited-overs stalwart now looked back at how he was picked by KXIP, just ten days before the commencement of the 2011 IPL season.
Miller came in as a replacement for an injured Stuart Broad and has not looked back ever since, becoming an indispensable part of KXIP, until released before the 2020 IPL auctions. The 30-year old was bagged by Rajasthan Royals (RR) at a base price of INR 75 lakhs.
“The first year, I went into the auction and I did not get picked up, literally 10 days before the IPL. I got a call from Kings XI Punjab and they said we are selecting you and you need to come over as soon as possible, there was an injury to Stuart Broad so I packed my bags and I went to India,” Miller told Pommie Mbangwa in a recent Instagram Live session.
“That’s where it all started, it was an incredible journey, firstly it was a just a one year deal, but then they retained me for the next two years at my base price. The first three years of mine at IPL were incredible,” Miller added.
Being a part of a star-studded lineup as an overseas player, Miller found it difficult to break into the side during his initial couple of seasons.
KXIP already had Adam Gilchrist as captain along with fellow Australians Marsh and David Hussey in their lineup. However, Miller found a place for himself during his third IPL season.
“In my first year, I did not get a single game at the IPL halfway through my second year, I got three games and then in my third year, Adam Gilchrist was retiring, he actually pulled his both hamstrings, I then got a game and that’s when I played my 101 run knock against RCB,” concluded Miller.
