Nothing captures the essence of David Miller more than the couple of catchphrases which he himself popularized after setting the IPL on fire in 2013: \"If it's in the V, it's in the tree; if it's in the arc, it's out the park\". He had been around for a while at this point, but this was the season which catapulted him into the next level.
Miller is a left-handed batsman, who is renowned for his power-hitting. He made his debut for the Dolphins at the age of 17 in the 2007-08 season. He averaged only 12.33 in that season as the Dolphins finished fifth. He managed to turn it around in the 2009-10 season when runs flowed from his bat. Although the results did not exactly go in his team's favour, he finished with 374 runs. He was selected in the South Africa 'A' team for a limited overs series against Bangladesh 'A' and he carried on his good form by scoring 195 runs in five games at an average of 65.
His consistent performances earned him a call to the South African national team for the tour of the West Indies in May-June 2010. It was a tough time for South Africa as they had failed to reach the semi-finals in the 2010 World T20. The selectors were on the lookout for fresh faces and Miller was among the players considered. He made his debut in the T20I at North Sound, Antigua.
After a successful IPL, he was named in the South African squad for the Champions Trophy. Since then, he has been a regular member of the ODI and T20I side. Despite having moderately successful numbers, especially since 2016, Miller has often faced unwarranted criticism. It probably had to do with that reputation which he had built due to his IPL heroics. He isn't a batsman who can tonk from ball one in every game but when set, there are few more dangerous batsmen than this dashing southpaw. Over the years, Miller has realised this and has given himself a bit of time before unleashing. The fact that he came in very early into the national team means that he still has enough time, with one more ODI World Cup in 2023 a realistic possibility. He has started to be more consistent across format and given his style of play, Miller is always a sure starter in limited-overs matches.