Hamish Rutherford, the New Zealand and Otago opening batter, will play his final professional cricket match next week in the Super Smash clash against Northern Districts in Dunedin. With a career spanning from 2008, Rutherford has amassed a total of 16,468 runs across formats.
In his cricket journey, Rutherford played 16 Tests out of 130 first-class games, scoring a memorable 171 on debut against England in 2013. His first-class career includes 7863 runs, 17 centuries, and an average of 35.26. While featuring in only four ODIs, he participated in 127 List A games, scoring 4326 runs with 13 centuries. In T20s, including eight T20Is, he played 192 matches, accumulating 4279 runs at a strike rate of 141.50.
Expressing gratitude for his cricket experiences, Rutherford said, “It has been a privilege to play for Otago and be part of this iconic province. 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.”
Rutherford holds the record for playing the most T20s for Otago, surpassing Neil Broom’s record earlier this month. Overall, he ranks third in the list of players with the most matches for Otago across formats, following Broom (348) and Derek de Boorder (292).
Describing Rutherford as one of Otago’s greats, Otago Cricket chief executive Mike Coggan praised his entertaining style and immense contribution to the team. The retirement of the seasoned opener will be honored by Otago Cricket on January 23 during his farewell game.
