Why Rinku Reminds SKY of Dhoni

After his heroics with the bat for Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL 2023, Rinku Singh is now setting the stage alight at the international level.

Rinku excelled in his role as the finisher as he blasted his way to an entertaining cameo of 31 from nine balls at an amazing strike rate of 344 to destroy the Australian bowling attack in the death overs in the second T20 International in Thiruvananthapuram on Sunday, November 26, 2023.

Coming into bat in the 18th over, the left-hander wasted no time in getting going.

He slammed pacer Sean Abbott for three fours and two sixes in the 19th over before hitting Nathan Ellis for a boundary in the final over. In the previous match, Rinku had played a cracking cameo of 22 from 14 balls, powering India to victory.

Rinku's composed demeanour on the field and his pyrotechnics with the bat has Captain Suryakumar Yadav gushing and comparing him to the legendary Mahendra Singh Dhoni.

'When I saw Rinku come in to bat in the last game, the composure he showed was brilliant. It reminded me of someone. Everyone knows the answer,' said Suryakumar, with an obvious reference to Dhoni after winning the second T20 International.

Rinku says there is a method to his madness.

'I bat in this number a lot. So, I am calm knowing this position. I know sometimes I will get 5-6 overs (to bat) or sometimes two overs. That's exactly how I practice, as if I'm batting in the last five. That's what V V S sir (V V S Laxman, India's coach for this T20 series) has also told me to train in the nets,' he revealed.

He says he doesn't premeditate much and his strokeplay depends on what delivery he is up against.

'I like to play each ball according to where it lands. I try to notice whether it's a slower ball or fast ball and I respond accordingly.'