'It's not just silly cricket...': Jacques Kallis' 'ideal' Rinku Singh message to Dravid for T20 World Cup
In six innings since making his debut in the Ireland tour in August, Rinku has smashed 180 runs in 96 balls with a boundary every 3.4 balls.
Amid the talk about Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma's future in T20I cricket and the limited international games before the T20 World Cup in June, Rinku Singh seems to have made the most of the opportunities he has managed since bursting into the scene in August following an exceptional IPL 2023 season for Kolkata Knight Riders. And given his numbers thus far, if not entirely, Rinku isn't far from cementing his place in the World Cup team. But ahead of Rahul Dravid and the selectors finalising India's squad for the tournament in June, South Africa legend Jacques Kallis has a message for the head coach pertaining to Rinku's role in the T20 World Cup team.
In six innings since making his debut in the Ireland tour in August, Rinku has smashed 180 runs in 96 balls with a boundary every 3.4 balls. 105 of those runs came in the recently-concluded Australia series at home where he scored with a strike rate of 175, laced with 13 boundaries and four maximums.
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Speaking to Star Sports ahead of the opening T20I match against South Africa in Durban, which was washed out even without the toss, Kallis hailed Rinku as a class act before reckoning that No. 6 is his ideal position to bat in a T20 game.
"He's a class act. You know, as we've seen over the last few months, what he's done for India. Finishing games. It's not just silly cricket. It's a real good cricketing shots when it needs to be. He can attack when he needs to do that towards the back end of an innings."
So you know the ideal batter to be batting at number six. Along with the rest, the team, that's a formidable finishing to an innings. In case one doesn't come off, you know, you've got a few others that can step up and do it. So for me, Rinku should be the number six and given a proper opportunity," he said.
India still have two more T20I games to play in the South Africa tour before the proceedings head back to home for a three-match contest against Afghanistan.
