Former Indian World Cup winner and newly appointed Kolkata Knight Riders mentor Gautam Gambhir believes that young Indian finisher Rinku Singh deserves all the success coming his way in the game, as he had a difficult road to make it to the bigger stage.
Rinku Singh has finally gotten his due after years of hard work in domestic cricket and the Indian Premier League (IPL). His route to success has been long and difficult. The 26-year-old’s batting exploits in South Africa follow on the heels of his consistent efforts in the just concluded home T20I series against Australia.
While speaking to Star Sports, Gautam Gambhir was extremely pleased with Rinku Singh’s innings against South Africa in the 2nd T20 Internationals. The former India opener stated that the Left-handed finisher values each of his knocks since he had worked hard and grinded it out on the domestic circuit to get to this position.
“When you come in after a lot of handwork, first-class cricket and you have performed at every single stage, then you value each of your knocks. Then you start every innings like it is your first one, and you won’t take anything for granted. Whatever success he gets, I feel, he deserves it. Because Rinku Singh hasn’t got anything easily. When he does well, it’s not just him, but the entire country becomes happy,” Gautam Gambhir said.
Rinku Singh ascended through the ranks to represent India this year. This followed his outstanding achievements for the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) the previous two years.
In the match against South Africa in the 2nd T20 International, The Left-handed batter scored an unbeaten 68 from 39 balls, which featured nine boundaries and two sixes, one of which famously cracked the glass of the media box. His knock came at a strike rate of 174.36, however despite his efforts, South Africa defeated India by five wickets.
In 11 T20I games, the southpaw has scored 248 runs with a strike rate of 183.7 and an average of 82.67. Rinku Singh has been a vital element of the team’s lower-middle order since his T20 debut for the country, where he delivered a pair of magnificent runs under pressure to lead the Men in Blue to win against quality opponents.
