Kolkata Knight Riders's three-wicket win over Gujarat Titans will go down as one of the most thrilling wins in KKR's history. We're into the 16th IPL season, but the T20 league still throws us the occasional googly and keeps everyone guessing till the last ball.
KKR's win on Sunday is surely one of the best contests the Indian Premier League has witnessed. And the entire credit goes to one man -- Rinku Singh!
Talk about a turning point in a match -- this game was a see-saw contest, with several turning points!
But the one which took the prize and the win was Rinku Singh's onslaught on Yash Dayal in the final over of the contest.
Though the fans saw the home team end up on the losing side, they did go home with racing hearts after witnessing an epic finish.
And giving the Knights the win was 25-year-old Rinku Singh.
It was a proud moment for the cricketer from Uttar Pradesh as the entire dugout ran out onto the pitch to embrace him.
Hailing from a lower-middle class family in Aligarh, Rinku dared to dream big! And the Knights will be thankful he did.
The left-handed batter has now played match-winning knocks in two matches on the trot. While Rinku put up a match-winning partnership with 'Lord' Shardul Thakur in the previous game, his team-mate gave him the title following KKR's win over GT on Sunday, April 9, 2023.
After losing four back-to-back wickets, which included a hat-trick from Rashid Khan, the hosts had KKR on the ropes. A win seemed impossible -- well almost.
Heading into the final over, KKR needed 29 off six. Mathematically possible, yes. Realistically -- not so much. Or so we thought!
Yash Dayal was handed the ball in the final over and after the first delivery it was nightmare for the GT bowler.
In a mellow start to the over, Umesh Yadav got off the mark with a single, putting Rinku on strike. Thereon, all eyes were on the sky as Rinku, who almost took a menial job instead of a cricketing career, single-handedly took the game away.
The game was a lot of firsts, but what everyone will remember is the last over. Taking on Dayal, Rinku hammered five sixes on the trot to guide KKR to a thrilling win.
The final over of the GT vs KKR game saw the most runs being scored ever in the last over of an IPL match. From 29 to 6, Rinku brought it down to four off 1 and finished it off with a six.
His team-mates raced onto the pitch and he was lost amidst crushing hugs as the Knights celebrated like they had won the trophy! It was close enough.
Just days ago, following his important knock at the Eden Gardens, KKR Co-Owner Shah Rukh Khan had requested Rinku to lead the team out for the presentation, to which Rinku had said, 'Sab English wale hain (everyone will speak in English)!' Well that surely doesn't count when you let your bat do the talking!
Rinku, who spent his childhood in a two-room quarter, was cheered on and celebrated by team-mates and spectators at the largest cricket stadium in the world.
