Credit: X/IPL
Sourav Ganguly, the former India captain, spoke about the omission of Rinku Singh from the Indian squad for the T20 World Cup 2024, in a recent interview. He stated that the Indian selector wanted to take an extra spinner to the tournament, feeling that the pitches will be slow and assist spin bowling, which is why Rinku Singh missed out.
Rinku Singh, who is one of the rising stars in Indian cricket in recent times, has played 15 T20I for the national team since making his debut last summer. In his 11 innings, he has scored 356 runs at an average of 89 and a strike-rate of 176.23 in a highly difficult finishers role at number 5-7 in the batting order, scoring two fifties in the process.
In the last couple of years of the IPL, Rinku Singh has also emerged as one of the key players for his franchise Kolkata Knight Riders. He has played 24 matches for KKR since 2023, scoring 606 runs at an average of nearly 40 and a strike-rate touching 150.
Despite his consistency in the T20 format, Rinku Singh was only picked as one of the reserve players to make the trip to the USA and the Caribbean for the T20 World Cup 2024. Sourav Ganguly addressed the exclusion of the left-handed batter from the 15-member Indian squad during the unveiling of the Bengal Pro T20 League trophy and said, as per Indian Express, “It’s West Indies. The wickets may be slow and assist spin so they (selectors) wanted to go with another spinner. Maybe because of that Rinku didn’t get an opportunity but it’s just the beginning for Rinku.”
Moreover, India are scheduled to play their first match in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 against Ireland on June 5, at the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in East Meadow, New York, the USA.
