After the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) achieved an incredible three-wicket victory over the Gujarat Titans (GT) in the IPL 2023 match on Sunday, April 9, skipper Shreyas Iyer gave Rinku Singh and Nitish Rana a special video call to congratulate them on their impressive performance. Iyer commended Rinku for his five consecutive sixes in the final over bowled by Yash Dayal. In reply, Rana quipped:
“Rinku keh raha tha last year ki tarah chhodunga nahi. Iss bar khatam karke aaunga. (Rinku said he will not leave the task incomplete like last year and will finish it this time.)”
Last year, He had an impressive showing against the Lucknow Super Giants, with 40 runs off 15 balls, but it wasn’t enough to clinch the victory for KKR as they fell short by two runs after chasing 210. However, Sunday was a different story as he remained unbeaten on 48 off 21 balls while Kolkata achieved a last-ball finish to chase down 205 and win.
“The two points we have from this game are thanks to Rinku.”: Rana
Skipper Rana praised him for earning two points for the team in Kolkata’s victorious game, and during the post-match presentation, he remarked on the outstanding performance:
“Rinku did something like this last year, although we didn’t win that match. When the second six was struck, we started believing more because Yash Dayal wasn’t executing that well. As a captain, it’s important to have that belief. But this is a one in a 100 chance for something like this to happen.
“Credit goes to Rinku Singh. The two points we have from this game are thanks to him. People asked me why he doesn’t get a bigger role and always plays a small role. I want to say to those reporters, if this is the second role, imagine what he can do with the first role.”
KKR had a shaky start after losing their openers; however, Venkatesh Iyer (83 off 40) and Rana (45 off 29) delivered a crucial 100-run partnership for the third wicket, which provided an important boost to the innings. In the end, Rinku’s performance helped KKR snatch the win from GT.