I have been waiting for last five years to get a chance: Rinku Singh
Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) arrested their five-match losing streak finally on Monday (May 2) when they defeated Rajasthan Royals in the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL). It wasn’t a comfortable win for them and had almost botched up a 153-run chase as well. But Rinku Singh and Nitish Rana batted superbly together with the former taking the lead and took them over the line to register their fourth win of the season.
Rinku scored an unbeaten 42 off just 23 deliveries with six fours and one six. What stood out in his knock was his composure at a time when things could’ve easily gone south for KKR. He dominated the partnership with his dear friend Rana and made sure his team won the game by seven wickets with five balls to spare.
Speaking after the match, Rinku Singh highlighted his struggles and battles with injury. He also pointed out how he had to wait for regular chances to make an impact in a tournament like the IPL. The fact that he played only his 13th IPL game on Monday (May 2) despite making his debut in 2018 speaks volumes about the lack of opportunities he got.
“A lot of players have played Ranji from Aligarh, but I am the first to play in the IPL. This is a big league and there is a lot of pressure obviously. I have been waiting for the last five years to get a chance,” he said in the post-match presentation ceremony.
Baz and Rana told me to stay till the end: Rinku Singh
Rinku Singh came out to bat at a very critical time when KKR skipper Shreyas Iyer got out with 61 runs still needed to win the game. He took a little bit of time early on before unleashing on the the Royals’ bowlers. At one stage, things looked a little bleak for the Knight Riders but Rinku batted well and with also Rana in the middle and head coach Brendon McCullum giving him confidence during the time-out, worked well for him.
“I worked very hard, came back from injury and did well on the domestic circuit as well. When I was batting, Bhaiyya (Rana) and Baz (McCullum) told me to stay till the end and finish it,” Rinku added.
