David Miller will exchange the colours of the Paarl Royals for the Proteas when they face England on a three-match ODI series David Miller will exchange the colours of the Paarl Royals for the Proteas when they face England on a three-match ODI series. Picture: Mike Hutchings/Sportzpics/SA20/BackpagePix
Cape Town – David Miller has represented 18 T20 franchises and one Hundred team across his career.
That’s plenty of different jerseys and badges. And along with it each team has its own culture and identity.
It’s a career path that he chose a long time ago. The life of a T20 freelancer.
But that’s why Miller cherishes every opportunity he gets to return to the Proteas national team. For him it's an identity. An opportunity to plug into a world that he’s wanted to be a part of since he was a little boy.
The @paarlroyals captain David Miller’s message to the Paarl Faithful. #SA20 pic.twitter.com/VH1Buk1SI1
— Cricket Fanatics Magazine (@cricfanaticsmag) January 22, 2023
“It has always been my dream to play for my country, and I remember watching it (the Proteas) on TV and meeting the players. It really has been a great journey. I’ve loved every minute of every game that I’ve played for my country,” Miller said ahead of the three-match ODI series against England later this week.
“Honestly, nothing has changed. Every time I pull it on (the Proteas jersey) it’s a special feeling. You get that self-satisfaction and self-pride of all the work that you have put in.”
Miller is currently leading the Paarl Royals, who are fresh off a victory over the Pretoria Capitals, in the Betway SA20 where England captain Jos Buttler plays alongside him.
It is remarkable that Miller and Buttler have been sharing ideas and strategies on how to create a successful environment at the Royals, but will go head-to-head in an international series within a few days.
To compound matters, the three-match series in Bloemfontein and Kimberley will last just six days before the Royals reconvene for the second leg of the SA20.
“I’ll have to let you know after the week because we are actually coming back into the same changeroom. That’s going to be quite interesting,” Miller chuckled in response to how the players would deal with the unique dynamic.
“But I think we are pretty used to it, in the sense with all the leagues happening, we get to know everyone. I think I’ve also been one to stick to the principle of whatever happens on the field, stays on the field.
“Everyone wants to win, everyone wants to succeed. It’s a fight for survival out there, and we definitely want to give it a full crack.”
The Proteas will have a new coach at the helm for the series against England with new Test coach Shukri Conrad at the helm, while new white-ball coach Rob Walter completes his obligations in New Zealand.
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The series is certainly of major consequence to the Proteas as they look to avoid having to qualify for the ICC World Cup in India later this year.
“It’s obviously do-or-die in terms of qualifying. We are going to give everything that we have to not go to the qualifiers,” Miller said.
“We need to win these games three-out-of-three and that will put us in good stead to qualify for the World Cup. The energy and pride that we have to go to a World Cup is always special, so to miss out on a World Cup wouldn’t be great.
“Looking forward to a couple of big performances in the next couple of weeks. A real big shift. And hopefully that goes a long way to qualifying for the World Cup.”
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