New Zealand fast bowler Kyle Mills has announced his retirement from all cricket, following his team-mate Daniel Vettori in departing the game after the World Cup. Mills, 36, was part of the squad in what was his third World Cup campaign, although he did not play a match.
He will leave the game second only to Vettori on New Zealand’s all-time one-day international wicket list, with 240 victims at 27.02 from his 170 appearances. He also played 19 Tests and collected 44 wickets at 33.02 and claimed 43 wickets from his 42 Twenty20 internationals.
“It’s been an honour and privilege to play cricket for my country over the past 14 years and I will miss it greatly,” Mills said. “However the time is right for me to step away from playing this great game and devote more time to my family who have sacrificed so much for me to keep playing the game I love.
“It’s important for me to acknowledge and thank the many coaches and mentors who have helped me along the way – they’ve all helped me become a better player in some capacity, whether that was when I was playing cricket for Howick-Pakuranga as a youngster or playing for Auckland and New Zealand.
“There have been many good times and some tough times on the field over the years, but my best memories will be of the team camaraderie and having the time of my life playing cricket for my country with my mates. I’m now looking forward to watching this exciting young New Zealand team over the next few years and enjoying their ongoing success and achievements.”
Mills began his first-class career for Auckland in 1998-99 and won his first New Zealand cap in the ODI format against Pakistan in Sharjah in 2001. The New Zealand coach, Mike Hesson, said Mills had been a fine bowler in the 50-over format especially for many years.
“It’s sometimes forgotten that over the course of his career Kyle has consistently been ranked in the top 10 ODI bowlers in the world and for a long time held the top spot,” Hesson said. “To have the longevity that Kyle’s had takes an incredible work ethic and desire to represent your country.
“On top of what he’s achieved on the field, he’s also a fantastic bloke and a great team man. He’s a natural leader who did a superb job of captaining the side in Bangladesh and Sri Lanka last year and has brought a lot of passion to the group.”
David White, the New Zealand Cricket CEO, said it should not be forgotten that Mills also provided valuable contributions to the Test team from 2004 to 2009.
“Kyle has been a wonderful ODI player over a long period of time and, but for injury, would have played closer to 200 games for New Zealand,” White said. “However, what I’ll always remember Kyle for most was when he knocked over the England Test team’s top-order during his match-winning spell at Hamilton in 2008 – dismissing in quick succession Alastair Cook, Michael Vaughan, Andrew Strauss and Kevin Pietersen.”