India batter Rinku Singh completed one year in international cricket on August 18, Sunday. The left-hander Rinku Singh had made his T20I debut for India against Ireland in the overseas tour last year and since then has had an amazing time with the national team. While he did not play any matches in the T20 World Cup 2024, Rinku Singh has always turned up with his bat in the shortest format of the game.
Rinku Singh The 26-year-old batter took to Instagram and shared a couple of delightful pictures in which he could be seen smiling beamingly with the cap in his hand, as well as a picture of Bumrah handing it over with the camp being all smiles for the Aligarh-born. Rinku Singh had to endure a challenging time up until getting selected for the 15-member squad for the Ireland tour, which the Indians managed to win by a 2-0 margin with the third game getting abandoned due to incessant rain.
Rinku Singh cricket career – A glimpse
Rinku Singh’s ‘s journey began with his domestic cricket career, where he represented Uttar Pradesh at various levels, including under-16, under-19, and under-23. He made his List A debut for Uttar Pradesh in March 2014 and his first-class debut in the 2016–17 Ranji Trophy. His impressive performances in domestic cricket earned him a spot in the Indian Premier League (IPL), where he was bought by Kings XI Punjab in 2017 and later by Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in 2018.
In the IPL, Rinku Singh initially struggled to find his footing, spending most of his time on the sidelines. However, his fortunes changed in the 2022 season, where he scored 174 runs in seven matches at an average of 34.80 and a strike rate of 148.72. This performance caught the attention of KKR’s head coach, Brendon McCullum, who praised Rinku’s incredible story and expressed his delight for the young player’s success.
The 2023 season proved to be a game-changer for Rinku. He consistently performed well, finishing as the leading run-scorer for KKR with 474 runs in 14 matches at an average of 59.25 and a strike rate of 149.52. His impressive form earned him recognition, and he was eventually called up to the Indian national team.
Rinku made his international debut in a Twenty20 International (T20I) against Ireland on August 18, 2023. In his second match, he scored a quick 38 runs before being dismissed by the last ball of the innings. He continued to impress, scoring 22 runs off 14 deliveries against Australia in the first T20I at Vishakhapatnam on November 23, 2023.
In November 2023, Rinku was named in India’s squad for their tour of South Africa. On December 12, 2023, he scored his first half-century in T20I cricket with a score of 68*. He made his One Day International (ODI) debut against South Africa on December 19, 2023, scoring 17 runs and taking the wicket of Rassie van der Dussen. In the second ODI, he played a match-winning knock against South Africa.
Rinku’s most notable international performance came on January 17, 2024, when he and Rohit Sharma stitched a 190* run partnership, India’s highest run partnership in T20I cricket and the highest run partnership for the fifth wicket in the world. In May 2024, Rinku was named as a reserve player in India’s squad for the 2024 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup tournament. He also played in the Indian tour of Sri Lanka in July 2024, where he bowled his first ever over, taking two wickets and conceding only three runs in the final match.
Rinku Singh expresses himself on completing 1 year in international cricket
Team India’s left-handed batter Rinku Singh completed one year in international cricket on Sunday, August 18. The southpaw made his debut in the T20I series opener between India and Ireland in Dublin last year. Rinku Singh didn’t get a chance to bat in his debut outing. He scored an impactful 38-run knock in the subsequent fixture, while the third and final T20I of the series was washed out due to rain.
The 26-year-old shared a picture of his maiden India cap on Sunday. He captioned the Instagram post:
“One year since the dream that turned into reality. Grateful for every moment in blue. Jai Hind 🇮🇳💙.”
Rinku Singh was last seen in action during India’s three-match T20I series against Sri Lanka last month. He failed to get going in the series, scoring just two runs from as many innings. However, he made a significant impact with the ball in the third T20I, claiming two wickets and giving away just three runs when Sri Lanka required nine runs to win from 12 balls.
Rinku Singh has scored 410 runs from 23 T20I at an average of 59.71 and a strike rate of 174.16. He has also played two ODIs and has 55 runs to his name in the format.
Rinku Singh not picked for the upcoming 2024 Duleep Trophy
The upcoming 17th edition of the Duleep Trophy is set to kick off on September 5. Team India stars like KL Rahul, Ravindra Jadeja, Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant, and Shubman Gill are set to take part in the red-ball competition. However, Rinku Singh didn’t find a place in any of the four squads. His exclusion surprised many, given his impressive first-class record. The dynamic batter has 3173 runs from 69 innings at an average of 54.70 in first-class cricket.
It is worth mentioning that Rinku could be added to one of the squads for the second round of the Duleep Trophy, considering that several players will join India’s Test squad for the two-match home series against Bangladesh.