 In his last ring appearance on 14 August 2019, Ritchie lost his IBF Australasian title via ten-round unanimous decision to 14–0 Tim Tszyu at the ICC Exhibition Centre in Sydney, Australia.On 9 November 2019, during a sparring session with Michael Zerafa in preparation for Zerafa's rematch against Jeff Horn the following month in Australia, Ritchie took a body shot, retreated to his own corner and collapsed.Despite attempts to save him, he could not be revived and died.