Young Indian finisher Rinku Singh has shared his thoughts after receiving his maiden cap for India in the T20 cricket against Ireland on Friday. The 25-year-old made it into the Indian side following his impressive show for Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL 2023.
The Left-handed youngster’s life had a drastic change after his heroics in the cash-rich league, where he impressed everyone with his finishing abilities, as he provided his side the much-needed momentum in the final overs and complete the chase for his team against the high-quality opponents which helped him to make it into the India squad for Ireland tour and Asian Games.
After receiving his maiden cap from the Indian skipper Jasprit Bumrah, speaking to Jiocinema, Rinku Singh opened up on his journey to make it into the squad and revealed it was an emotional moment for him and his family, who worked very hard to reach this level in cricket.
Moreover, he said that there was a lot of blood and sweat involved in his journey to the Indian team and asserted that self-belief has helped him to reach this level in the game.
“It is a nice feeling (being part of the Indian team setup) because I have worked very hard to reach here.
“I picked up cricket almost 10-12 years ago and the one goal my parents set for me was to represent the country. They felt IPL is played by so many but only a few get picked for the Indian team so they wanted me to make the most of my opportunities in IPL and get to the Indian team. And now their dream is about to come true.
“I was in Noida with my friends when I got a call about my selection. Immediately after the news I called my mother and she got very emotional. Listening to her emotion-laced voice, I couldn’t control the tears of happiness. They were waiting for this moment for a while now.
“A lot of blood and sweat has gone behind to earn this call. My passion for the sport helped me wade through a lack of support and financial hardships. One thing that kept the desire burning was to give my family a good life, which was possible if I moved up the ladder in the sport. I had that self-belief and that made me stronger and helped me in my journey which has taken a new turn.” Rinku Singh said.
The southpaw just left the cricketing world awestruck with his stunning power-hitting and finishing abilities in the IPL 2023. Rinku Singh scored 474 runs in 14 games at an average of almost 60 in IPL 2023 and a strike-rate of nearly 150 producing some memorable knocks for the KKR in this edition of the cash-rich league.
Rinku Singh did not get the opportunity to bat in his 1st T20 as the game was spoiled by the run but would look to utilize the opportunity to do well for India in the given opportunity as he would be very much in India’s plans for the 2024 T20 World Cup.