Asia Cup 2025: 'KKR backed me at my worst' - Rinku Singh expresses gratitude to his IPL franchise

Rinku Singh is a part of India's squad, which is currently competing in the 2025 Asia Cup in the United Arab Emirates. However, the fearless left-handed batter has not been given an opportunity to play so far. He is competing for a spot in the playing XI with the likes of Shivam Dube and Tilak Varma. Both players have done reasonably well in the first two games India have played so far, and this means that Rinku might have to wait a little bit longer to play his maiden Asia Cup encounter.

Rinku made his India debut in August 2023 after showcasing his talent in the Uttar Pradesh team as well as in the Kolkata Knight Riders' (KKR) setup. The Aligarh-born has been with the KKR team since 2018. In his initial years, Rinku didn't get too many playing opportunities in the IPL. However, the Kolkata-based franchise had faith in his abilities and kept waiting for the right time to play him consistently in the middle-order.

Rinku recalled an incident from 2021, when he injured himself in a domestic fixture against Railways in 2021. He sustained a knee injury after trying to go for a double. Rinku said that his major concern was not the pain or the extent of the injury but whether he would miss the impending edition of the IPL.

“KKR backed me at my worst. There was a time I was fearing the worst after my knee injury in 2021. I was batting against Railways, wearing new shoes and spikes. I tapped my bat for a quick double and instantly heard a crack — I just fell to the ground," Rinku said while speaking on a podcast with Raj Shamani.

“My first thought was about being ruled out. At that time, my contract was worth ₹80 lakh, and in those circumstances, that money was important to me. An MRI revealed it was a meniscus tear,” he added.

The diminutive cricketer then underwent surgery and spent almost four months in rehab before returning to the domestic circuit. Rinku expressed his gratitude to KKR for showing trust in his abilities as he embarked on the road to a comeback.

“Even though I did well in the domestic circuit, I wasn’t sure if I would be picked again. That year, both KKR and LSG were bidding for me, and eventually, KKR bought me for ₹55 lakh. That’s when I felt I had another chance to prove myself,” he said.

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The 27-year-old has played 58 matches for KKR, scoring 1099 runs at an average of 30.53 and a strike rate of 145.18. In T20Is, he has aggregated 546 runs from 24 innings at an average of 42 and a strike rate of 161.07.