Rutherford seeking to seize opportunities in stint with Mumbai Indians

By Brandon Corlette and Jemima Holmes

West Indies and Guyana’s explosive T20 batsman Sherfane Rutherford will rock the Mumbai Indians’ outfit when the Indian Premier League (IPL) eventually gets underway.

Expecting to depart Guyana’s shores shortly to prepare for the IPL, Rutherford spoke with this daily publication and noted that he anticipates learning a lot from some of the best players in the world.
“I want to thank God for the opportunity,” he declared. “As we know, Mumbai Indians is one of the best IPL teams. For me, it’s going to be fun, even though it is a power-packed team. I think I am going to learn from the best in the world, and this will be a boost for me, where I can come back and add something to my game,” Rutherford said.
He was traded from the Delhi Capitals, and is now with the defending champions Mumbai Indians’ team, the most successful franchise in the history of IPL. Rutherford highlighted that when given the opportunity to play, he would be aiming to make it count, since there are a lot of good players in the team.

Asked about the difficulties he might encounter in finding his place and rhythm in the team, he said, “That’s out of my control, but I will be aiming to make every opportunity count. (There are) a lot of good players in the team, and most likely, with a team like that, every opportunity counts; so it’s all about the opportunity and making the best use of it,” he added.
This 21-year-old left-handed batsman has been putting in the ‘hard yards’, training day-in day- out, but he noted that the preparation process has been smooth.
“I’ve been doing some work with my trainer, and I think it’s coming along well. I’m feeling good, so I think it’s just (about) performing now. Even though I am not playing a lot of cricket, the confidence is there, and I will look to go enjoy it,” Rutherford highlighted.
Speaking about leading the Rutherford Renegades in the Golden Republic T20 Bash to a win over their counterparts the Hetmyer Hurricanes, Rutherford noted that leading the team was a boost for him. He explained that that was his first experience captaining, and he enjoyed every bit of it.
“I’ll be looking to put myself to lead teams at the local level, and learn from it,” he disclosed.
With Mumbai Indians being a star-studded team comprising of Rohit Sharma and co, Rutherford disclosed that he is looking forward to partnering India’s star all-rounder Hardik Pandya.
He has participated in 39 T20 International matches, six of which have been for the West Indies, and he has already played T20 cricket on the global stage for teams that include the Guyana Amazon Warriors, Delhi Capitals and Sylhet Thunder. Since his IPL debut against Kings XI Punjab in April 2019, Rutherford has played seven matches and has registered a strike rate of 135, while his overall strike rate in all T20s sits at 140.

Mumbai Indians Final squad: Rohit Sharma, Sherfane Rutherford, Suryakumar Yadav, Anmolpreet Singh, Chris Lynn, Saurabh Tiwary, Dhawal Kulkarni, Jasprit Bumrah, Lasith Malinga, Mitchell McClenaghan, Rahul Chahar, Trent Boult, Mohsin Khan, Prince Balwant Rai Singh, Digvijay Deshmukh, Hardik Pandya, Jayant Yadav, Kieron Pollard, Krunal Pandya, Anukul Roy, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Ishan Kishan, Quinton de Kock, and Aditya Tare.