Rinku Singh, the emerging Indian middle-order batter, showcased his explosive batting prowess by smashing an unbeaten 68 off 39 balls against South Africa in the 2nd T20I at St. George's Park in Gqeberha on Tuesday evening.
This remarkable innings marked Rinku's maiden T20I fifty, adding to his impressive scores of 46, 31*, 22*, 37*, and 38* since his debut in August. Known for his muscle and six-hitting abilities, Rinku is gaining a reputation as the next big finisher for India.
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Entering the crease in the sixth over after Tilak Varma's dismissal, Rinku started with a straight drive for four. He patiently built his innings, unleashing back-to-back boundaries off Marco Jansen in the 11th over. The real onslaught began in the 13th over, where Rinku powered three fours off Andile Phehlukwayo and three more off Lizaad Williams to complete his fifty in just 30 balls.
In the final two overs, Rinku went berserk, smashing consecutive sixes off Aiden Markram. The second six, a powerful shot, not only propelled India to 180 but also damaged the glass panel of the media box at St. George's Park in Gqeberha.
Rinku Singh has broken the glass of media box with a six. 🔥
— Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) December 12, 2023
- The future is here. pic.twitter.com/4hKhhfjnOr
That Rinku SIX just landed in the media box. pic.twitter.com/fwAXKUUvD1
— Rajal Arora (@RajalArora) December 12, 2023
Dale Steyn compared Rinku Singh to Hashim Amla
South African legend Dale Steyn praised Rinku's temperament and maturity in batting, drawing comparisons to former teammate Hashim Amla.
"I enjoyed his temperament. And I liked that at the start of his innings, when he scored an early boundary and went 'thank you very much, I'll take a single'. And later, he would score 9-10 off the first three balls of an over and that's already enough at the St. George's Park," he said.
"He made it a 15-17 over, which was very impressive for me. That's something you see only from experienced players. Someone like Hashim Amla used to do it. So that really showed that there's some maturity in his innings. He was effective both off side and leg side and whenever the ball was overpitched, he showed his power game and hit over the top for six. So just an overall all-round player," added South Africa's highest Test wicket-taker.
What next for Rinku Singh?
Rinku's heroics were not enough to guide India to a victory over the Proteas as the hots chased down their revised target of 152 in 15 overs with five wickets in hand.
The two teams will lock horns again in the final T20I on Thursday at the Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg.
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