Sherfane Rutherford relishes his bigger role at Gujarat Titans: 'Want to be a batter, not just a finisher'

Sherfane Rutherford is a two-time IPL winner, but he didn't play any matches in those tournaments. He was a reserve with Mumbai Indians in 2020 and Kolkata Knight Riders in 2024. Across five seasons and five franchises (he was with Sunrisers Hyderabad in 2021 as a replacement, but again, didn't play) before IPL 2025, he batted in only ten games, but this year he has finally shed his tag as a back-up for players like Kieron Pollard and Andre Russell and carved out his own identity with Gujarat Titans.

While Shubman Gill, B Sai Sudharsan and Jos Buttler have piled on the runs at the top for GT, Rutherford has been a silent contributor in the middle order, scoring 267 runs in ten innings (as of May 27) at a strike rate of 157.05, which is higher than that of other overseas middle-order batters in the league, such as Tristan Stubbs and Shimron Hetmyer.

Not many expected Rutherford to start the season ahead of Glenn Phillips, let alone bat at No. 4, but head coach Ashish Nehra and the team management saw his potential to anchor an innings as well as to finish it.

"The IPL has always been one of the biggest learning curves for me," Rutherford says. "Every time I come to the IPL, I try to learn as much from the players and coaches. I think coming into GT this year and having the chance to play [regularly] has been good for me.

"It's an opportunity I've been looking forward to for my whole IPL career. I think it's important for me to keep learning, keep looking to get better, keep trying to take those opportunities given to me. And hopefully, I can make this IPL a good one for myself and for my team."

Rutherford had a rough initiation into the Titans set-up when he failed to seal a chase of 244 - at one point seeming within his grasp - against Punjab Kings. After hitting two sixes and a four off his first five balls, he got stuck against Vijaykumar Vyshak's wide yorkers for two overs, though he has had a strike rate of nearly 180 against balls wide outside off since the start of 2021.

"Hitting the ball over cover, hitting the wide ball, has been something that I've been known for in CPL," Rutherford says. "My whole life, growing up, I have been good at hitting the ball on the outside. I spoke to a few players as well. One thing I learned is that it happens, and on that day, I wasn't up to the mark for playing the wide ones.

"But I feel like it is something I am good enough to do, and I'm willing to accept that challenge again. Some days it's good to accept it and just move forward and not to dwell on it for too long."

Rutherford put that game behind him. Less than a month later, he helped finish a match against Delhi Capitals, coming to the crease when GT needed 130 off 75 balls. With Buttler in boss mode at the other end, Rutherford played a measured innings, scoring 43 off 34 balls, as Titans successfully chased a 200-plus target for the first time in the IPL.

"Jos is very calm, very experienced," Rutherford said. "The important thing in that conversation was, 'Just play the ball and forget about the score. Just read the situation, play every ball at its merit.'

"I'm a natural hitter of the ball. I can hit sixes when I want. It was important for me to just know which ball I'm going to hit and which ball I'm going to take on and just keep going, keep batting and take it as deep as possible."

A key moment in Rutherford's evolution as a versatile middle-order batter came in the 2024 T20 World Cup game against New Zealand. On a tough Trinidad pitch, where West Indies had lost four wickets in the powerplay, Rutherford repaired the innings and then gave it a finishing kick, targeting Daryl Mitchell, the weakest link in the New Zealand attack. During his unbeaten 68 off 39 balls, he displayed a combination of skill and sense.

"It was a game that needed batsmanship and I thought I did well," Rutherford recalled. "I think as a player, I want to be that guy more often than not. As I said, cricket is a game where you have to keep trying. Once you keep trying, you know you're in. I learned that I can always make up in the end. It's important to rotate strike, get off strike, hit those gaps, capitalise on bad balls, and once I'm in, I can always make a difference.

"It's important for me to evolve. The game is evolving, so I want to be evolving. I made a promise to myself that I just don't want to be a hitter. I want to be a batter. So, you know, I'm still learning, and I'm still trying to add more to my game. And I think it's important for me to just keep learning and keep adding."

Dwayne Bravo has had a strong influence on Rutherford's progress, having captained and mentored him during St Kitts and Nevis Patriots' run to win their maiden CPL title, in 2021.

Rutherford made his T20I debut for West Indies in 2018, but it was only after the 2021 CPL title under Bravo that he believed that he could cut it at the top level. He has since become a sought-after player in T20 leagues. After the IPL, he will head to MLC to play for Los Angeles Knight Riders and then join Barbados Royals in the CPL.

"Bravo has always been like a brother to me," Rutherford says. "He has been one of the coolest guys I've worked with as a player. And even as a coach, when he came to St Kitts that year, I could remember that he was like, 'You're going to bat at No. 4.' He said, 'You have the ability. You're going to bat at four, so just make sure you are ready.'

"I was very happy because, as I said, I always want to be a batter, not just a finisher. I think he saw that in me and gave me that role. Ever since then, I try to keep working on batting. Even when I'm in the nets, I don't really do any big hits. I just try to play good cricket shots and get in a good position."

That didn't happen in GT's heavy defeat against Chennai Super Kings on Sunday, where Rutherford ended up flapping Anshul Kamboj to mid-on for a duck. H e has a chance to remedy that and win his first IPL title as a playing member of a team.

"Yeah, it [winning the IPL title with GT] will mean a lot," he says. "I had this conversation with a few of my West Indies colleagues, but yeah, it's going to be better. I kind of feel better playing… being a part of a team and contributing to a win. So I'm really excited and looking forward to it this year."