India’s outgoing batting coach Vikram Rathour feels that the explosive middle-order batter Rinku Singh’s skillsets should be developed more to transfer him into a future Test player for the national side. During the former’s tenure, under head coach Rahul Dravid, Rinku made his white-ball debut.
In the shortest format of the game, the 26-year-old has already smashed 416 runs in 15 innings, at an average of nearly 83, with a strike rate of close to 180, besides celebrating a couple of fifties. On most occasions, Rinku Singh has displayed his explosive batting, coming late in the batting order.
Rathour, who has observed the batting of the Aligarh-born quite closely, feels that Rinku Singh has all the technical aspects to be successful for India in the red-ball format.
‘One of the players to have moved up the ladder in the past two seasons is Rinku Singh, who has played two ODIs and 20 T20Is, but can’t be called a regular in the national side yet.’ The former India player expressed during an exclusive interview with PTI ‘He is a fantastic finisher in short-format cricket, but also averages 54.70 after 69 first-class innings.’
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Since making his maiden first-class appearance in 2016, the left-handed middle-order batter has smashed 3173 runs in 69 innings, at an average of 54.70, with 20 fifties and seven centuries for Uttar Pradesh.
‘Rinku Singh is also blessed with a very calm temperament’- Vikram Rathour
The breakout season for Rinku Singh in the Indian Premier League (IPL) was in 2023, when he nailed 474 runs in 14 innings, at a strike rate of nearly 150, with four half-centuries. Last year, he made his T20I debut against Ireland, before being involved in his maiden ODI game against South Africa in December 2023.
However, even after having a fabulous record in the shortest format of the game, the Kolkata Knight Riders batter failed to find a place in the Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 squad, besides traveling as a reserve player with the team, which the BCCI chief selector called the toughest decision that his committee had to make.
Rathour felt that even though Rinku Singh had made a reputation in T20Is, he could flourish more in the longest format of the game.
‘When I see him bat in nets, I can’t find any technical reasons why Rinku cannot be a successful Test batter.’ Rathour continued. ‘I understand he has made his name as a terrific finisher in T20 cricket, but if you look at his first-class record, he is averaging in the high 50s.’
The former India batter praised the calm temperament of the batter which will help him in developing in the longest format of the game.
‘He is also blessed with a very calm temperament. So all these factors indicate that, if given an opportunity, he can develop into a Test cricketer.’ The outgoing batting coach concluded.
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India will have a long home summer, where they will face Bangladesh in a two-match Test series, before taking on New Zealand in a three-match series in the red-ball format. Later in the year, they will make a trip to Australia for the five-match Test series in the ‘Border Gavaskar Trophy’.
It will be interesting to see if the Indian selectors think of giving the young and new players any chance to be part of India’s Test side.