Kamal Ghorui
NEW DELHI: Rinku Singh delivered a memorable all-round performance for Kolkata Knight Riders in their dramatic Super Over win against Lucknow Super Giants on Sunday in another thriller of IPL 2026 season, but the night also carried deep personal emotion.Reacting to Rinku’s performance, his fiancée Priya Saroj said, “Hum bohot khush hain. Aaj unhone (Rinku) khela hi father-in-law k liye, aaj unko hum bohot miss kar rahe hain, aur yeh unke liye hi hai, [We are very happy. Today he (Rinku) played for my father-in-law; we are missing him a lot today, and this is all for him.]” highlighting how the knock was dedicated to his late father.Rinku’s father, Khanchand Singh, passed away earlier this year, at the age of 57 after battling stage-four liver cancer. The loss came during the T20 World Cup, forcing Rinku to briefly return home to Aligarh for the last rites, a moment that has clearly stayed with him.
On Sunday in this IPL 2026 game, that emotion seemed to translate into performance. Walking in with KKR reeling at 93/7, Rinku anchored the innings with a career-best unbeaten 83 off 51 balls. He paced his knock smartly before unleashing a stunning assault in the final over, smashing four consecutive sixes to lift KKR to 155/7.With LSG matching the total, the match headed into a Super Over. Sunil Narine then turned the game with the ball, dismissing Nicholas Pooran and Aiden Markram. Rinku was again at the centre of action, completing a relay catch with Rovman Powell.Chasing just two runs, Rinku fittingly struck the winning boundary. The UP-born cricketer was sensational with his fielding too as he also took five catches in this IPL 2026 match, capping a remarkable all-round display that earned him the Player of the Match award, a performance made even more meaningful by the emotions behind it.
