Published: Apr 18, 2023, 08:38 AM (IST)
Edited: Apr 18, 2023, 08:38 AM (IST)
New Delhi: Kolkata Knight Rider’s star batter Rinku Singh is the talk of the town for his sensational form in 2023 Indian Premier League (IPL). The 25-year-old left-hand batter from Uttar Pradesh smashed consecutive sixes in the last over and gave his team a win out of an impossible situation.
Even though Rinku is not among the highest-earning cricketers of the IPL, he still has set up a hostel for upcoming cricketers looking to make it big but somehow couldn’t achieve their dreams due to financial constraints.
Rinku’s father Khanchandra Singh used to deliver LPG cylinders where as his brothers — Sonu (an auto-rickshaw driver) and Mukul (mopped floors at a coaching centre) were forced to contribute to meet their daily expenses.
“He always wanted to build a hostel for young players, who do not have financial resources to pursue their dreams. As he is financially sound now, he has decided to make it a reality,” Masooduz-Zafar Amini, Rinku’s childhood coach from Aligarh, told this daily.
The hostel is coming up at the venue. “The work started around three months ago with Rinku watching the progress from close quarters before heading to join his team. The hostel will have 14 rooms and each one can accommodate four trainees. A shed and a pavilion are also being constructed. Separate toilets are also being constructed. These trainees can have food at the canteen being run at the place. It will cost around `50 lakh and the whole expenditure is being borne by Rinku,” added the coach.
Rinku’s eldest sibling, Sonu, who will look after the day-to-day affairs of the hostel, is happy that his brother’s dream is finally coming true. “We delivered gas cylinders together when our father was not able to do that but we always wanted him to focus on cricket. The sacrifices we made bore fruits as he not only pulled us out of poverty but also decided to build a hostel for poor cricketers,” Sonu told this daily.
In an interview Virat Kohli admitted that he was left dumbfounded at the level of batting that the KKR star had put forth that night, something that was beyond his imagination.
“What the youngsters are doing today is amazing to see. Look at this IPL, I couldn’t even think of doing stuff what these young guys are doing. Just the other night, Rinku Singh hits 5 Sixes in last 5 balls which is amazing & never happened something like that. Coming in an hitting five sixes in a row to win a match, I mean what level is this? So that transition is happening is great. It is great to see such youngsters coming up,” he said.
