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In the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023, Rinku Singh became a household name after tonking Yash Dayal for five sixes in the last over to win the match. Since then, Rinku has been a regular in the T20I squad. He won the IPL 2024 with Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), got retained by them for a hefty amount. He was also a member of the T20 World Cup 2024-winning squad. Branded as T20 batter, Rinku said that he wants to shed the image as he has a good first-class record. The Aligarh-born batter dreams of playing Test cricket for India.
“I know fans love it when I hit sixes, and I’m really grateful for that. But my Ranji Trophy average is also very good — I average over 55 there. I really enjoy playing red-ball cricket. I’ve also played two ODIs for India and did well in one of them. So, it’s not like I’m only a T20 player. I believe I can perform in every format if I get the chance. I don’t like being tagged as a one-format player; I see myself as an all-format player. My dream is to play Test cricket for India, and if I get the opportunity, I’ll be ready to grab it,” Rinku told TOI.
The 27-year-old Rinku has played 50 first-class games so far and scored 3,336 runs from 72 innings at an average of 54.68, including seven centuries and 22 fifties. He scores at a strike rate of 71.14 in the red-ball format.
Rinku considers Raina as he is idol
Rinku was often compared to former India batter Suresh Raina in early years. He revealed that Raina had a conversation with him about playing all formats. He wants to be ready if the opportunity comes knocking on his door.
“Suresh Raina bhaiya is my idol. He always tells me, ‘Rinku, be ready and prepared for everything.’ I’d be very happy to play Tests for India and contribute there too. Raina bhaiya has played most of his matches at the position where I bat, and he has produced many match-winning knocks. I want to be the same kind of player for India across all formats,” the left-handed batter said.
Rinku’s recent form in T20s
Meanwhile, the selectors seem to look as Rinku as a T20 speciallist. He was not picked in the Duleep Trophy 2025 squads. Currently, he is leading Meerut Mavericks in the Uttar Pradesh Premier League 2025. He is among the leading run-scorers in the season with 332 runs from 10 innings at an average of 66.40 and strike rate of 179.46. He has scored one century and two fifties for Meerut Mavericks this season ahead of the qualifiers.
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