Daryl Joseph Mitchell (born 20 May 1991) is a New Zealand

cricket Cricket is a Bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball game played between two Sports team, teams of eleven players on a cricket field, field, at the centre of which is a cricket pitch, pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two Bail (cr ...

er who plays all formats of the game for the New Zealand

national team A national sports team (commonly known as a national team or a national side) is a team that represents a nation, rather than a particular club or region, in an international sport. The term is most commonly associated with team sports, for exa ...

and represents

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, in the county of Kent, England; it was a county borough until 1974. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. The city has a mild oceanic climat ...

in domestic cricket. He is the son of New Zealand rugby union coach and former player John Mitchell. After appearing in over 200 domestic matches in New Zealand's domestic cricket system, Mitchell finally made his international debut in 2019. Mitchell is known for his adaptability and went onto cement his reputation of playing any given role assigned to him at international level. He nailed his reputation as a bankable finisher especially noted for his ability to finish the games. He had been one of the most impactful players in the Super Smash and renowned for having hit the most sixes in Super Smash prior to his late entry to international cricket. He is often confused by fans and English cricket pundits, as his namesake Daryl Mitchell is also a right-handed batting

all-rounder An all-rounder is a cricketer who regularly performs well at both batting and bowling. Although all bowlers must bat and quite a handful of batsmen do bowl occasionally, most players are skilled in only one of the two disciplines and are cons ...

originally from England who has mainly played for

Worcestershire Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It is bordered by Shropshire, Staffordshire, and the West Midlands (county), West ...

at county level.

Early life

He was still pursuing his

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Medieval Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six years ...

in exercise and sports science when he turned up at Northern Districts in 2012 at the age of 20. He lived in

Perth Perth () is the list of Australian capital cities, capital city of Western Australia. It is the list of cities in Australia by population, fourth-most-populous city in Australia, with a population of over 2.3 million within Greater Perth . The ...

, Western Australia for five of his formative years and he even shared the field with some of the Australian cricketers including the likes of

Andrew Tye Andrew James Tye (born 12 December 1986) is an Australian cricketer who plays One Day Internationals (ODIs) and Twenty20 Internationals (T20Is) for the Australian national cricket team. At the domestic level he plays for Western Australia crick ...

, Marcus Harris and Marcus Stoinis especially through the school and grade ranks in Western Australia. In March 2009, Daryl Mitchell, Marcus Stoinis and

Justin Langer Justin Lee Langer (born 21 November 1970) is an Australian cricket coach and former cricketer. He is the former coach of the Australia men's national team, having been appointed to the role in May 2018 and leaving in February 2022 and became ...

sat together as team-mates in the changerooms at the WACA celebrating a first-grade premiership for

Scarborough Scarborough or Scarboro may refer to: People * Scarborough (surname) * Earl of Scarbrough Places Australia * Scarborough, Western Australia, suburb of Perth * Scarborough, New South Wales, suburb of Wollongong * Scarborough, Queensland, sub ...

. During his three years with Hale in school cricket and two years with Scarborough at club cricket, Mitchell also played for the Western Australia Under 19s, Under 23s and for the Australian Centre of Excellence, which was part of a Futures League T20 competition. Following his impressive showing in Australian third grade level competitions, he received a contract from Northern Districts which he gladly accepted and since became a regular in New Zealand domestic circuit. As a teenager, he and his family moved to Western Australia in 2006 when his father John, got the position of head coach of the Western Force rugby union side.

Domestic career

In June 2018, he was awarded a contract with Northern Districts for the 2018–19 season. In June 2020, Mitchell moved from Northern Districts to

. In November 2020, in the fourth round of the 2020–21 Plunket Shield season, Mitchell took his first

five-wicket haul In cricket, a five-wicket haul (also known as a "five–for" or "fifer") occurs when a bowler takes five or more wickets in a single innings. This is regarded by critics as a notable achievement, equivalent to a century from a batter. Takin ...

in first-class cricket, with 5/44 against

Otago Otago (, ; ) is a regions of New Zealand, region of New Zealand located in the southern half of the South Island and administered by the Otago Regional Council. It has an area of approximately , making it the country's second largest local go ...

. In May 2021, Mitchell was awarded with his first central contract by

New Zealand Cricket New Zealand Cricket, formerly the New Zealand Cricket Council, is the governing body for professional cricket in New Zealand. Cricket is the most popular and highest profile summer sport in New Zealand. New Zealand Cricket operates the New ...

, ahead of the 2021–22 season. That month, he was also signed by

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, former county in South East England, now mainly within Greater London. Its boundaries largely followed three rivers: the River Thames, Thames in the south, the River Lea, Le ...

for the latter part of the 2021 t20 Blast. In February 2022, he was bought by the Rajasthan Royals in the

auction An auction is usually a process of Trade, buying and selling Good (economics), goods or Service (economics), services by offering them up for Bidding, bids, taking bids, and then selling the item to the highest bidder or buying the item from th ...

for the 2022 Indian Premier League tournament. In January 2023

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated ''Lancs'') is a ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Cumbria to the north, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and the Irish Sea to ...

announced that Mitchell would be playing for the county in both the

County Championship The County Championship, currently known for sponsorship reasons as the Rothesay County Championship, is the only domestic first-class cricket competition in England and Wales. Established in 1890, it is organised by the England and Wales Cri ...

and

T20 Blast The T20 Blast, officially known as the Vitality Blast for sponsorship reasons, is a professional Twenty20 cricket league in England and Wales. The competition was established by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) in 2003. T20 Blast is t ...

in the 2022–23 season.

International career

In January 2019, he was named in New Zealand's

Twenty20 International Twenty20 International (T20I) is a form of Twenty20 cricket, in which each team plays a single innings with a maximum of twenty overs. The matches are played between international teams recognized by the International Cricket Council (ICC). ...

(T20I) squad for their series against India. He made his T20I debut for New Zealand against

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

on 6 February 2019. In November 2019, he was added to New Zealand's

Test Test(s), testing, or TEST may refer to: * Test (assessment), an educational assessment intended to measure the respondents' knowledge or other abilities Arts and entertainment * ''Test'' (2013 film), an American film * ''Test'' (2014 film) ...

squad for the second Test against England. He made his Test debut for New Zealand, against

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

, on 29 November 2019. In January 2021, in the second Test against Pakistan, Mitchell scored his first century in Test cricket, with an unbeaten 102 runs. In March 2021, Mitchell was named in New Zealand's

One Day International One Day International (ODI) is a format of cricket, played between two teams with international status, in which each team faces a fixed number of fifty overs, with the game lasting up to 7 hours. The World Cup, generally held every four yea ...

(ODI) squad for their series against Bangladesh. He made his ODI debut for New Zealand on 20 March 2021, against

Bangladesh Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...

. On 26 March 2021, Mitchell scored his first century in ODI cricket, in the third match of the series against

2021 ICC T20 World Cup

In August 2021, Mitchell was named in New Zealand's squad for the 2021 ICC Men's T20 World Cup. He opened the batting alongside Martin Guptill during the entirety of the 2021 ICC Men's T20 World Cup although a role he had never done before. He had played in 116 T20 matches prior to the 2021 ICC T20 World Cup where he had never opened the batting in any of those matches. He was promoted to open the innings during the 2021 edition of the T20 World Cup by the then head coach Gary Stead. Prior to the 2021 T20 World Cup, New Zealand coaching staff and management intended to give Mitchell the finishing role in the middle order along with Jimmy Neesham. However, the plans had to be changed later, courtesy of late arrival of first choice opener Tim Seifert who joined the bio-secure bubble pity late due to the latter's involvement with the

Kolkata Knight Riders The Kolkata Knight Riders, also known as KKR, are a professional Twenty20 cricket team based in Kolkata, West Bengal, that competes in the Indian Premier League (IPL). The franchise is owned by actor Shah Rukh Khan, actress Juhi Chawla, and ...

franchise during the 2021 Indian Premier League and as a result, Daryl Mitchell went onto become an accidental opener of New Zealand cricket. In the team's semi-final against England, he opened the batting and scored 72

not out In cricket, a batsman is not out if they come out to bat in an innings and have not been dismissed by the end of an innings. The batsman is also ''not out'' while their innings is still in progress. Occurrence At least one batter is not out at ...

, with New Zealand winning the match by five wickets; Mitchell was awarded the player of the match. He ended the 2021 T20 World Cup campaign on a higher note having notched up impressive returns with the bat as an opener in his first ever experience of having opened the batting in a tournament, scoring 208 runs in seven innings, averaging 34.66 with the bat and with a strike rate of 140.54. His batting prowess was also one of the crucial reasons which helped New Zealand to reach the 2021 T20 World Cup final.

2022 England test tour

Mitchell maintained a highly successful test tour to England in July 2022 where he piled up a mammoth runfest aggregating a record 538 runs with a stellar average of 107.60 in the three match test series although New Zealand ended the test tour on a receiving end after being whitewashed by the home side 3–0. Mitchell turned out to be one of the only two bright sparks alongside

Tom Blundell Sir Thomas Leon Blundell, (born 7 July 1942) is a British biochemist, structural biologist, and science administrator. He was a member of the team of Dorothy Hodgkin that solved in 1969 the first structure of a protein hormone, insulin. Blun ...

for the Kiwis during the one sided test series where he scored three centuries in three successive test matches and he went past Martin Donnelly's tally of 462 runs to become the most prolific New Zealand player to have ever scored the most runs in a single test series on English soil against England. He also became the first New Zealand batsman to score centuries in three consecutive test matches in England and became only the sixth visiting batsman to score centuries in three successive test match appearances in England. He also became the first batter in the world to score hundreds in each match of an away series of three or more tests. During the test series, he along with wicket-keeper batsman Tom Blundell set a new record for New Zealand for being the most successful New Zealand pair in a test series with an aggregate of 611 partnership runs. His tally of 538 runs in the three-match test series also set a new record for most runs among New Zealand batsmen in a test series. Prior to the England test series in July 2022, Mitchell had not played a red ball first-class match in four months and was not in contention for a test spot for the England tour but was included for the first test match of the series at Lord's later as a replacement to Henry Nicholls whose positive COVID-19 test had played a part in delaying his rehabilitation from a calf injury.

2022 ICC T20 World Cup

In September 2022, Mitchell was named in New Zealand's squad for the

2022 ICC Men's T20 World Cup The 2022 ICC Men's T20 World Cup was the eighth edition of the Men's T20 World Cup, formerly known as the ICC World Twenty20. It was played in Australia from 16 October to 13 November 2022. In the final, England cricket team, England beat Pakist ...

2023 Cricket World Cup

In September 2023, he was included in New Zealand's 15-member squad for the 50-over World Cup in India. He played a remarkable role in the 2023 Cricket World Cup and almost won the match for New Zealand in the semi final against India by scoring a wonderful 134 off 119 balls.

2024 ICC T20 World Cup

In May 2024, he was named in New Zealand’s squad for the

2024 ICC Men's T20 World Cup The 2024 ICC Men's T20 World Cup was the ninth edition of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup, co-hosted by Cricket West Indies and USA Cricket from 1 to 29 June 2024. It was the first major ICC tournament to include matches played in the United ...

tournament.

Rugby

He also worked as an assistant strength and conditioning coach at Waikato Rugby from 2018 to 2020. He also played rugby at school level during off seasons especially at winter seasons.

Honours

He was named as the winner of the ICC Spirit of the Cricket Award 2021 during the 2021 ICC Awards in recognition of his act for his decision on not to run for a single after realising that he had obstructed English bowler Adil Rashid on his way during the critical juncture of the closely fought tense semi-final clash between England and New Zealand at

Abu Dhabi Abu Dhabi is the capital city of the United Arab Emirates. The city is the seat of the Abu Dhabi Central Capital District, the capital city of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, and the UAE's List of cities in the United Arab Emirates, second-most popu ...

. He was nominated for the ICC Player of the Month along with

Jonny Bairstow Jonathan Marc Bairstow (born 26 September 1989) is an English cricketer who played internationally for England cricket team, England in all formats as a right-handed wicket-keeper-batter. In domestic cricket, he has played for Yorkshire County C ...

and

Joe Root Joseph Edward Root, (born 30 December 1990) is an English international cricketer, who plays for the England cricket team, English cricket team and formerly captained the Test team. He also represents Yorkshire County Cricket Club, Yorkshire ...

for the month of June 2022.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Mitchell, Daryl 1991 births Living people Canterbury cricketers Cricketers from Hamilton, New Zealand Middlesex cricketers New Zealand cricketers New Zealand Test cricketers New Zealand One Day International cricketers New Zealand Twenty20 International cricketers Northern Districts cricketers Rajasthan Royals cricketers Wisden Cricketers of the Year London Spirit cricketers New Zealand expatriate cricketers in England Chennai Super Kings cricketers New Zealand expatriate cricketers in India