The sixteenth season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) is clearly off to a thunderous start. From smashing sixes to unbelievable catches, we have already seen a lot of mega-moments in this year’s IPL. However, on April 9, 2023, a match played between Kolkata Knight Riders and Gujarat Titans at the Narendra Modi Stadium went down in IPL’s history as one of the most memorable matches ever.
The Gujarat Titans gave a target of 204 runs, and in the 18th over of the match, it looked like KKR was going to lose 3 crucial points. However, it was a young 25-year-old left-handed top-order batsman from Uttar Pradesh’s Aligarh, Rinku Singh, who smashed five sixes in five balls to snatch away the victory under the noses of Gujarat Titans. The cricketer remained unbeaten by the end of the match and made 48 runs in just 21 deliveries.
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Rinku Singh’s memorable performance against Gujarat Titans is engraved in the history books of IPL as one of the best match-winning innings by a cricketer in the last overs. In his post-match presentation, Rinku revealed that he simply followed his strike partner, Umesh Yadav’s valuable advice, 'Hit it Rinku, don’t think', which turned out to be in their team’s favour.
The Kolkata Knight Riders’ star player, Rinku Singh was born on October 12, 1997, in Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh. The cricketer belongs to a working-class family and is third among his five siblings. Talking about Rinku’s father, Khanchandra works as an LPG cylinder delivery man, while his mother, Bina Devi is a housewife. For many years, Rinku and his family lived in a 2-room quarter in the stockyard provided by the cylinder company.
During that time, Rinku’s brother used to work as a sweeper in a coaching centre in order to run their family. However, when the same job was offered to Rinku, he said ‘No’ and told his family that cricket would take him places. Once in an interview with Kolkata Knight Riders, Rinku opened up about the same and recalled how he refused to do sweeping or mopping. He said:
"When I was just starting out and had yet to play proper cricket, I was asked to join my brother for a job. I got a job of sweeping and mopping in a coaching centre. I refused because I didn't like the work."
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In an interview with News18, Rinku Singh’s close friend, Arjun Singh Fakira opened up about his struggles in order to become a cricketer. Arjun revealed that Rinku had no support from his family because of their low income and even got thrashed by his father for not concentrating on his studies. Opening more about it, Arjun admitted that Rinku’s daddy was completely against his decision to play cricket as never in his wildest dreams had he thought that his son would become a cricketer.
Further, in the same conversation, Arjun Singh Fakira, who has been more than a friend to Kolkata Knight Riders’ batsman, Rinku Singh, recalled the moment that changed the latter’s life forever. He revealed that once, his cricketer friend had participated in a tournament and won a bike for his cracking performance. Rinku gave the bike to his father so that he could deliver the LPG cylinders more safely. The gesture not only melted his father’s heart but also made him believe in his son’s passion for cricket. That was the day when Rinku’s father gave full freedom to his son and became his biggest supporter. Recalling the turning point in Rinku’s life, Arjun said:
"Then came a turning point when while playing a tournament Rinku won a bike, which he gave to his father to help him out while making kitchen gas deliveries. That very moment his father realized that his passion for sports is not ordinary and that one day he will do something big. Rinku, then got the biggest support of his life and that was that of his own father."
After his tremendous match-winning innings against Gujarat Titans, Jeetu Singh, brother of Kolkata Knight Riders’ man of the moment, Rinku Singh opened up about his struggle. Opening up about his routine during his struggling days, Jeetu revealed that Rinku used to wake up in the wee hours and used to go straight for running. After coming from running, he used to spend some time in the gym. The next thing on his schedule was cricket practice, where he used to spend most of his time. However, even after coming from his exhausting physical training all day, Rinku was extremely strict about his diet. Opening up about the same, Jeetu Singh said:
"I still remember Bhai’s tough regime, waking up in the wee hours, running, gymming, practicing, dieting, and so on. He is my role model."
Well, there’s no denying the fact that Rinku Singh’s struggle story looks like a script of a Bollywood film, which keeps on inspiring youngsters across the nation. What do you think? Let us know.
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