1
general::
Abandon or desert someone in difficult straits. For example, Jane was angry enough to quit without giving notice, leaving her boss in the lurch. This expression alludes to a 16th-century French dice game, lourche, where to incur a lurch meant to be far behind the other players. It later was used in cribbage and other games, as well as being used in its present figurative sense by about 1600.
American Heritage Idioms
2
general::
Phrase(s): leave someone in the lurch
Fig. to leave someone waiting for or anticipating your actions. • Where were you, John? You really left me in the lurch. • I didn’t mean to leave you in the lurch. I thought we had canceled our meeting.
McGrawhill's American Idioms And Phrasal Verbs