Rising from poverty, KKR star batter Rinku Singh is now paving the way for other budding cricketers to reach the heights of IPL excellence. Coming from a family with his father delivering LPG cylinders, one brother driving an auto and the other mopping floors at a coaching center, Rinku was determined to make something of himself. Now, 25-year-old Rinku has reportedly spent ₹50 lakhs to make dreams come true for other underprivileged cricketers by building them a hostel.
Masooduz-Zafar Amini, Rinku’s childhood coach, told:
“He always wanted to build a hostel for young players who do not have financial resources to pursue their dreams. As he is financially sound now, he has decided to make it a reality.”
“Almost 90 per cent of the work is done. It will get ready by next month. Rinku will inaugurate it once he is back from the IPL. Hopefully, this facility will make life easier for these youngsters.”
The hostel provides a total of 14 rooms, all of which have separate toilets and are capable of accommodating four trainees. This will offer aspiring cricketers modest but affordable lodging and meals from the canteen that has been built into the facility.
Rinku Singh holds the record for chasing down the most runs in the last over in IPL history
In an incredible display of batting prowess, Rinku Singh achieved an outstanding feat last week in an IPL match against Gujarat Titans. He chased down 29 runs off the last over, smashing five sixes in a row off successive balls against his UP teammate Yash Dayal.
Initially snapped up by Punjab Kings in 2017 for a ₹10 lakh price tag, Rinku Singh could only make his IPL debut after being acquired by KKR for ₹80 lakhs the following season. This gamble paid off for KKR when Rinku scored 174 runs with a 148.72 strike rate in seven games during IPL 2022. In the current campaign, he has already scored 174 runs in five games at a strike rate of 162.62.
Domestically, Rinku has dazzled for UP cricket, amassing 2,875 runs in 40 List-A matches with a remarkable average of 59.89. He has posted 7 centuries and 19 half-centuries in those games while averaging 53 in 50 first-class outings, adding 1,749 runs to his name, including a ton and 16 half-centuries.