Rinku Singh was not selected in the 15-man squad for the Indian Team at the upcoming T20I World Cup, however, the 26-year-old could only make it to the travelling reserves list.
The Kolkata Knight Riders' finisher has seen an uphill ride in India colours, until Indian Premier League 2024. Having made his debut in T20Is against Ireland in August 2023, Singh's performances would have him as a nailed-on candidate to represent India at the T20I World Cup in June 2024.
However, the Indian captain, and the selection committee, headed by Ajit Agarkar, had other plans. In the media briefing conference by Rohit Sharma and Agarkar on Thursday, the latter revealed how they were gutted for Rinku Singh having missed out on the flight to the United States as a part of the 15-member team.
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What did Ajit Agarkar say about Rinku Singh's omission from T20I World Cup squad?
Ajit Agarkar, the chief selector of the BCCI, stated how leaving Rinku Singh, besides Shubman Gill, was the toughest decision to make. Agarkar admitted that the players did nothing wrong on their part, to be omitted from the squad.
Toughest thing we have had to do (to leave out Rinku Singh from the 15-man squad). Even Shubman Gill for that matter. These guys have done nothing wrong, Ajit Agarkar told during the media briefing on Thursday.
Agarkar reiterated the fact that Rinku Singh was not at fault for missing out on the T20I World Cup. The squad composition was made such to give more sources at Rohit's Sharma's disposal. An extra wrist-spinner was selected above the extra batter, to have dynamic options in the squad.
We included more wrist-spinners to give Rohit more options. It's not Rinku's fault, hasn't done anything wrong. We got two keepers, felt that having an extra spinner would be handy. He's one of the travelling subs, but it's tough on him to be dropped. At the end of the day, we could pick just 15, Agarkar concluded.
How has Rinku Singh performed in T20Is?
| Matches | Innings | Runs | Average | Strike Rate | 50s | High Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15 | 11 | 356 | 89.00 | 176.23 | 2 | 69* |
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