Shah Rukh Khan (R) during IPL 2024 match at Eden Gardens© X (formerly Twitter)
Kolkata Knights Riders principal owner Shah Rukh Khan has endorsed the inclusion of his left-handed power hitter Rinku Singh in the Indian team for the upcoming T20 World Cup, calling it his “personal wish”. The 26-year-old Rinku came into the spotlight when he hit five consecutive sixes in Kolkata Knight Riders' stunning win over Gujarat Titans at IPL 2023. Rinku's name is doing the rounds when it comes to selecting the 15-member Indian team are worried about the T20 showpiece, to be held in the US and West Indies in June. He has a strike rate of 176 plus in 15 T20I for India with two fifties. Shah Rukh expressed his optimism about Rinku's World Cup prospects during an interview on Star Sports: “Such great players are playing for the country. I'm really looking forward to Rinku, Inshallah in the World Cup squad and also some other youngsters from other teams.
“Some of them deserve it so much, but my personal wish is that Rinku makes the team. I will be so happy. That will be the highlight for me.” With top-flight KKR accounting for the bulk of the goals so far this season, Rinku has not been given many opportunities with the bat.
However, in his debut season, the hard-hitting batsman from Aligarh amassed 356 runs in 15 matches, remaining unbeaten in seven of those matches. His runs have come at a strike rate of over 175, but power-hitting is not his only talent as he has the ability to remain calm under pressure.
The Bollywood megastar, who is close to Rinku, is excited about his rise after facing many obstacles on his way to success.
Rinku's family grew up in a modest environment and struggled to make ends meet, with his father working as a delivery boy of LPG cylinders and his mother a housewife.
Despite being offered a job as a sweeper, Rinku followed his passion for cricket, believing that it would lead him to greater heights.
SRK said, “I just want them to feel happy and when I see these boys playing, I feel like I am living as a sportsperson myself. Especially players like Rinku and Nitish (Rana), I see myself in them. I feel very happy when they perform well.”
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