England quick Tymal Mills has revealed that his daughter Delphi, 2, suffered a stroke at the airport shortly before he was due to fly out to Australia to play in the Big Bash League.
Mills had been drafted by defending champions Perth Scorchers, having made seven appearances in their title winning campaign where he took 12 wickets at an average of 15.83.
However, the 30-year-old was forced to pull out of the tournament after his daughter fell ill. In an emotional post on Instagram, Mills wrote: "Home for Christmas after the most horrible 11 days. As we were at the airport about to leave for Australia our daughter suffered what ending up being a stroke.
"She lost complete use of the left side of her body and we were told they couldn't predict how much she would regain.
"Despite all of the challenges she faced our little girl has amazed everyone with her recovery to point where we were discharged with her hopping and skipping out of the hospital.
"She has lots of rehab, medication and scans ahead but we are so grateful to be where we are right now. Thank you to everyone that’s reached out to us. Keep your loved ones close".
Mills has two children with his wife India-Kate McLaven and missed the birth of their second daughter Caelan because he was on international duty with England as they won the T20 World Cup earlier this year.
David Payne, a fellow England international and left-arm seamer, has been announced as Mills' replacement. The Scorchers' plans have been thrown into disarray this year, with all three of their original overseas signings forced to pull out.
Laurie Evans, who played a match winning innings in last season's final, had his contract terminated after he tested positive for a banned substance, with him saying he was "shocked" by the news and had no idea what caused the positive test. Phil Salt, meanwhile, was forced out after injuring his shoulder in England's third ODI against Australia in November.
