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Who is Rinku Singh?
Rinku Singh is an Indian cricketer who plays for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) and Uttar Pradesh in Indian domestic cricket. He has not got a chance to represent the senior India team so far.
Born to a Gas Cylinder delivery man father and a household worker mother on October 17, 1997, Rinku Singh did not grow up going to the academies like his peers and competitors on the field would have. But cricket is unpredictable, not only in the manner it pans out but also in choosing who would play it at the highest level and how.
The Bareilly boy got recognition in the Indian Premier League while playing for Kolkata Knight Riders after he hit a fellow Uttar Pradesh player Yash Dyal of Gujarat Titans for five sixes in a row in the last over of the game while chasing 29 to win. This was a feat never achieved before in league or international cricket.
The Bareilly boy got recognition in the Indian Premier League while playing for Kolkata Knight Riders after he hit a fellow Uttar Pradesh player Yash Dyal of Gujarat Titans for five sixes in a row in the last over of the game while chasing 29 to win. This was a feat never achieved before in league or international cricket.
Early Life and Education
Rinku Singh was born and brought up near the Aligarh Stadium where his family used to live in a two-room quarter provided to his father as part of his LPG cylinder delivery man job. Rinku was never good in academics and cricket is all he knew.
Asked to help his elder brothers, Rinku went to a coaching institute and was offered a job as a cleaner. After the first day at the job, he quit and told his mother that cricket will provide for him, when and how he doesn’t know.
Playing in city cricket matches, Rinku once won a motorcycle for being Player of the Series and that is when his family believed in him and his skills. Academically, he calls himself a “Ninth Fail”.
Career
Part of the Uttar Pradesh Under-19 team, Rinku looked set to represent India Under-19 in 2014 but missed out. However, since then, he has represented the senior UP team, scoring 2875 runs in 40 First Class games, 1749 runs in 50 List A matches and 1392 runs in 78 T20 games as on April 10, 2023. His average is above 50 in both First Class and List A.
Rinku was picked up by Punjab Kings (then Kings XI Punjab) in 2017 but could not get a chance in the playing 11. In 2019, he was picked for 80 Lakhs by Kolkata Knight Riders but could play only four games. He was in the field regularly though for his outstanding outfield acrobatics.
In 2019, he was suspended by BCCI for breaching the board’s code of conduct by playing in a foreign cricket competition. He learned his lessons soon and focussed on domestic cricket. The 25-year-old got injured just before the 2021 season of the IPL. Maybe it was a blessing in disguise as it made him even stronger and fitter. The Southpaw got seven matches in the 2022 season with Kolkata and scored 178 runs at a strike rate of 148 and an average of 34 to cement his place in the side for the next season.