Hamish Rutherford, New Zealand and Otago’s opening batter, will play his final professional match next week against Northern Districts in Dunedin. Rutherford’s career, which began in 2008, will come to a conclusion. He has scored 16,468 points across multiple forms.
Rutherford played 16 Tests as part of his 130 first-class appearances, scoring 171 on debut against England in 2013. He scored 7863 first-class runs, including 17 centuries, while averaging 35.26. He played only four ODIs but 127 List A games, amassing 4326 runs and 13 hundreds in the format, as well as 192 T20s (including eight T20Is) for 4279 runs at a strike rate of 141.5.
“It has been a privilege to play for Otago and be part of this iconic province,” he said in a statement. “While playing for New Zealand was always the dream, I’m grateful for the opportunities cricket has given me and my family. I’ve loved every minute of it. I appreciate all the support I have had from family and friends, fellow players, coaches and supporters of the province.”
Rutherford will retire having played the most Twenty20s for Otago, breaking Neil Broom’s record earlier this month. Overall, he will retire having played the third-most matches for Otago in all formats, after only Broom (348) and Derek de Boorder (292).
“Hamish will undoubtedly be considered one of Otago’s greats,” Otago Cricket chief executive Mike Coggan said. “I have seen him play innings that very few other cricketers are capable of. He has been an entertainer at the top of the innings, and he has my utmost respect as a player and person. His contribution to Otago Cricket has been immense.
“I have not seen another opener who has combined patience and aggression as Hamish has. His big century on debut at home was astonishing against a quality England side and the 155 (off 100 balls) he scored in a Ford Trophy match in Dunedin against CD back in 2020 was something to behold. Hamish has always been a student of the game and one of domestic cricket’s finest thinkers. He has been a pleasure to watch and know and I wish him well in retirement.”
On January 23, Otago Cricket will honour Rutherford in his final game.
