Young West Indies batsman Sherfane Rutherford left the Sunrisers Hyderabad camp in the UAE after learning of his father’s untimely death, the franchise confirmed in a statement.
Left out of SRH’s playing XI for Wednesday’s IPL fixture against against Delhi Capitals (DC), the 23-year-old was preparing for the rest of the tournament until the sad news made him take the first flight back to the Caribbean.
Rutherford had joined the Sunriesers as a replacement signing for their first-choice opening batsman and wicketkeeper Jonny Bairstow, who had shown great form during the Indian leg of the competition but opted out of the second half due to potential bubble fatigue in the long season ahead with the England side.
Rutherford had been picked on the back of good performances for St Kitts & Nevis Patriots in the Caribbean Premier League 2021. The 23-year-old left-hand batsman struck 262 runs at an average of 37.42 and strike-rate of 127.18.
Given SRH’s batting issues, there was a strong chance of Rutherford making the playing XI at some stage of the ongoing tournament. The player would’ve had additional motivation behind him playing for SRH, having been left out by West Indies selectors for the T20 World Cup.
SRH are standing at the bottom of the IPL 2021 points table right now with just a solitary win and seven losses in their eight matches. On the verge of elimination, the 2016 champions will next take the field against Punjab Kings on September 25.
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