NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / New Zealand

Ryder says thanks to supporters

By Andrew Alderson & Anna Leask
Herald on Sunday·
31 Mar, 2013 07:26 PM5 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Jesse Ryder won't be back on the pitch for a while after his lung sustained serious damage. Photo / Getty Images

Jesse Ryder won't be back on the pitch for a while after his lung sustained serious damage. Photo / Getty Images

Bashed cricket star Jesse Ryder has today thanked fans, family and friends for all their support while he was in crtitical condition over the last three days.

Ryder was moved out of the intensive care unit at Christchurch Hospital this afternoon and is now in a stable condition in a ward.

"I just want to let everyone know that I'm ok," Ryder said in a written statement.

"I feel heaps better today but still really tired. I've been reading your messages that have been sent so thank you to everyone for thinking of me over the last few days.

"I want to thank everyone who has been caring for me at the hospital - they have been awesome. Thank you to my family and friends who have been here also."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

A hospital spokesman says Jesse is continuing to improve and is now well enough to be out of ICU.

He says there is no word at this stage whether his doctors and family want him to be transferred to Wellington Hospital.

Just moments after making an Easter resurrection from his near-fatal beating, Ryder was pleading with the nurses in Christchurch Hospital.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"Tell them to get me out of here," were some of the first words he uttered when he woke from a coma and learned where he was and his welfare was worrying thousands of Kiwis.

His manager and mate Aaron Klee said the plea was light-hearted, but great for the family to hear: "He's been quite cheeky. We've had some giggles this afternoon, mainly one-word-type conversations. I've told him he's one of the most talked-about people in New Zealand."

The burly 28-year-old told family he hoped to make a return to top-flight cricket once his punctured lung and other injuries had healed.

Klee said Ryder was aware he had been robbed of potentially half a million dollars of income in the next six months by the attack. "He asked me about cricket but I just said to him, 'It's going to be a while before you are playing cricket, mate'."

Discover more

Sport|cricket

Ryder: Messages of support

29 Mar 01:10 AM
New Zealand

Jesse's crash course for trouble

29 Mar 04:30 PM
New Zealand

Ryder out of induced coma

30 Mar 05:28 AM
Opinion

Kerre McIvor: Ryder a fall guy in random violence

30 Mar 04:30 PM

It was still a remarkable turnaround for the batsman, who sustained such awful injuries after being kinghit from behind, and having his chest kicked in, that, one teammate said, his head "looked like the elephant man, it was spewing blood".

Ryder was still dazed and confused as he emerged from 36 hours in an induced coma, but delighted to see his partner Ally and mother Heather there.

"It's not like in the movies when they wake up peacefully and give everyone a big hug. It takes a while," said Klee. "It was emotional for those of us that were there to see it. It happened quite quickly once they started changing the levels of the drugs. Just to see him wake up and acknowledge that you're there and start asking for people. He's been under a lot of drugs in his coma, with a pipe down his throat as well, so I think he's pretty uncomfortable. He's not on solid food."

But yesterday Klee said the same determination that had kept Ryder in the game would see him overcome the injuries. "There is an internal drive in Jesse that I have never been able to figure out," he said.

Ryder's injuries were contained mainly to his head and lungs. He had not suffered brain damage and Klee described the skull fracture as "like a very bad concussion".

"There's been quite a bit of damage to his lungs though. That's been the toughest part, that's what they've been most concerned about." Asked if Ryder would ever return to cricket, Klee said: "I hope so. Who knows? ... I'm pretty sure that there's a drive within Jesse that will get him back if he can."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Klee said Ryder's overseas contract and loss of salary was "the least of our worries at the moment".

Apart from his much-publicised $300,000 Indian Premier League contract with the Delhi Daredevils, there was income from other T20 leagues, another potential boxing bout in June and future domestic contracts with Wellington.

As a mark of respect, Ryder's Wellington Firebirds have cancelled their end-of-season dinner.

Chief executive Peter Clinton said team protocols around drinking had been met on the night Ryder received his injuries. "We'll have to wait and see what form of support Cricket Wellington can provide but we want to ensure he and his family are well supported and comfortable."

Meanwhile, prominent Christchurch defence lawyer Kerry Cook is understood to be defending at least one of the alleged attackers. He was seen arriving at the Christchurch Central Police Station with a client on Friday. At a press conference just over an hour later it was revealed police were interviewing a second man. When contacted yesterday, Cook refused to confirm which of the men he was representing.

The 20-year-old and 37-year-old relatives will appear in court on Thursday when they will face assault charges.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Player's Association boss Heath Mills said. "It didn't look good on that first day so to get to where we are now is amazing news."

RYDER'S FULL MESSAGE:

"I just want to let everyone know that I'm okay. I feel heaps better today but still really tired. I've been reading your messages that have been sent so thank you to everyone for thinking of me over the last few days.

"I want to thank everyone who has been caring for me at the hospital - they have been awesome. Thank you to my family and friends who have been here also."

Save

    Share this article

Latest from New Zealand

New Zealand

Three hospitalised after major house fire in Dunedin

20 Jun 06:39 PM
Premium
New Zealand

'Awful': Forestry skidder tipped over cliff after logging company goes bust

20 Jun 06:00 PM
New Zealand

'Save a lot more lives': Stage 4 cancer survivor's plea for earlier screening

20 Jun 06:00 PM

Jono and Ben brew up a tea-fuelled adventure in Sri Lanka

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from New Zealand

Three hospitalised after major house fire in Dunedin

Three hospitalised after major house fire in Dunedin

20 Jun 06:39 PM

More than two dozen firefighters battled the fire at its peak.

Premium
'Awful': Forestry skidder tipped over cliff after logging company goes bust

'Awful': Forestry skidder tipped over cliff after logging company goes bust

20 Jun 06:00 PM
'Save a lot more lives': Stage 4 cancer survivor's plea for earlier screening

'Save a lot more lives': Stage 4 cancer survivor's plea for earlier screening

20 Jun 06:00 PM
Brewing kindness: The volunteers bringing comfort one cuppa at a time

Brewing kindness: The volunteers bringing comfort one cuppa at a time

20 Jun 06:00 PM
Help for those helping hardest-hit
sponsored

Help for those helping hardest-hit

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP