Each of those five successive sixes that Rinku Singh hit on Sunday in Ahmedabad was not just about earning Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) an unthinkable win over Gujarat Titans.
They were also a statement on his ability as a match-winner and, more importantly, a figurative outcome of his desire to break free of the economic constraints he had to grow up with that were an impediment to his dreams of becoming a cricketer.
The financial situation at home in Aligarh has been getting better and better since the Knight Riders picked him for Rs 80 lakh in the 2018 auction, Rinku had said last year. He wasn’t a regular then in the Knights’ XI like he is now, but he revived his career with consistent showings across formats for his state team (Uttar Pradesh), which continued to keep him in the loop before he impressed in IPL 2022, finishing at a strike rate of 148.72 from seven matches.
Besides, those five hits in a do-or-die situation for his team on Sunday will help the world take notice of his cricketing skills and not just his humble background. As the focus shifts to his game, it will accelerate his progress as a batsman. To be fair to the 25-year-old, he has made fair progress over the last 12 months.
In spite of some blistering strokeplay, he wasn’t able to take KKR home in their final game of IPL 2022 against Lucknow Super Giants, falling to a one-handed stunner by Evin Lewis in the final over. But on Sunday, in an amphitheatre-like Motera and with KKR needing 29 for victory, Rinku was perfect in terms of power, timing, shot selection and hitting at the right areas.
Of course, his mindset deserves special mention as it seems to have become stronger. “I had noticed Rinku’s talent when I first saw him six-seven years ago,” former Uttar Pradesh coach and selector Gyanendra Pandey told The Telegraph on Monday.
“At the U-19 level, he had smashed a 190-odd in a Coochbehar Trophy knockout game in Mumbai against Punjab. Shubman Gill, too, had played in the game. At present though, he (Rinku) understands that he needs to carry on till the end and win the game for his team. It underlines the fact that he’s growing in maturity, while he’s also hungrier for more success.”
Former India wicketkeeper Ajay Ratra, who coached Uttar Pradesh last season, echoed Pandey. “One big plus point of Rinku is he is always on the lookout to score even off good balls. We saw that in the two innings (79 and 89) against Bengal at the Eden last December, where he scored at a brisk pace.
“His raw talent aside, he needed to give himself just a little more time before going on the attack. I used to tell him so during our interactions. He seems to have understood that now,” Ratra said. “His performance curve should keep going upwards after Sunday’s knock.”
