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.