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Rinku Singh's name will be indelibly etched in IPL folklore. What the left-handed batter achieved on April 9 (Sunday) happens only once in a hundred attempts. But for Rinku, that one moment transpired at the biggest stadium in the world when all eyes were on him and after almost everyone had given up on the idea of a miracle. The left-handed batter made the miracle happen with outrageous stroke-making that ended up in a fairytale ending. Rinku became immortal by smashing five consecutive sixes in the last five balls of the match between Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and Gujarat Titans (GT).
In the final over, KKR needed 29 runs to win. Umesh Yadav took a single off the first ball. Rinky made space for himself and hit Dayal for a six over extra cover. Dayal followed it up with a full toss that was deposited over the backward square leg boundary for a six. Dayal erred again and the full toss was hit over the long-off boundary. Dayal bowled a short-of-a-length ball that was picked by Rinku and flat-batted over long-on. KKR needed four off the final ball and Rinku smashed it over long-on to seal a famous win for KKR. He scored 48 runs from 21 balls as Dayal was left distraught.
Like everyone else, KKR skipper Nitish Rana was in awe of Rinku's mind-boggling effort with the bat. While reflecting on Rinku's phenomenal knock, Rana reflected on a question he was asked by reporters about giving the left-handed batter a primary role in the team.
"We had belief because Rinku had done something similar last year, although we did not win. After the second six, we started to believe more because Yash Dayal was also not executing well. You win one out of a hundred matches this way. We were bowling well for 18 overs but did not bowl well towards the end. Same in the batting department where we allowed Rashid and GT back into the game. This result, though, is only down to Rinku and his brilliance,” Rana told the host broadcaster after the game.
"Reporters had asked me the other day, why Rinku does not play a bigger role. If this is his secondary role, then imagine what he can do in a primary role. I do not have words to describe Rinku's innings," the KKR captain added.
In the last season, he showed what he is capable of with a 15-ball 40 to almost snatch a win from the jaws of defeat against KL Rahul-led Lucknow Super Giants (LSG). While many thought the game was done and dusted, Rinku approached it in a simple manner.
Rinku is a product of the KKR Academy. His contract of Rs 55 lakh may not justify what he pulled on an adrenaline-filled Sunday evening but he always had a hunger for it since his under-19 side for Uttar Pradesh. He had humble beginnings as his father delivered LPG cylinders and the family had a debt of Rs 5 lakh but it did not stop him from giving up on the dream of playing cricket.
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