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Rinku Singh is making his T20I debut for the Men in Blue against Ireland in the T20I opener at The Village in Dublin on Friday, August 18. The left-handed batter received his maiden cap from Team India captain Jasprit Bumrah ahead of the toss.
Rinku’s debut comes after his exploits with the bat in the last two editions of the Indian Premier League. He emerged as the leading run-scorer for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in IPL 2023, scoring 474 runs in 14 games at a strike rate of 149.53, including four half-centuries. It included five consecutive sixes when KKR needed 28 runs off the last five balls against Gujarat Titans, with Rinku at the strike.
The 25-year-old previously scored 174 runs in seven games at a strike rate of 148.72 during his IPL 2022 campaign.
Fans on Twitter sent their best wishes to Rinku on his T20I debut. One user tweeted:
"Happy to see Rinku Singh in the mix. He deserves it."
Here are some of the other Twitter reactions:
India opt to bowl first; Rinku Singh and Prasidh Krishna make their debuts
India captain Jasprit Bumrah won the toss and opted to bowl first against Ireland on Friday. The Men in Blue included debutants Rinku Singh and Prasidh Krishna in their playing XI.
Shivam Dube also made his national comeback after three years and seven months. He last played for the Men in Blue against New Zealand in February 2020. Meanwhile, the skipper himself is playing after almost 11 months after a lengthy injury layoff.
Speaking at the toss, Bumrah said:
“We'll bowl first, very happy to be here. The weather looks lovely. I feel good, looking forward to play some cricket. You realise what you were missing, very happy to be back. We expect nothing short of a fight from Ireland. As a fast bowler, I hope the pitch does something."
He continued:
"We have two debuts - Rinku and Prasidh Krishna. Told them to just enjoy their cricket.”
Ireland XI: Paul Stirling (c), Andrew Balbirnie, Lorcan Tucker (w), Harry Tector, Curtis Campher, George Dockrell, Mark Adair, Barry McCarthy, Craig Young, Joshua Little, Benjamin White.
India XI: Ruturaj Gaikwad, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sanju Samson (w), Tilak Varma, Rinku Singh, Shivam Dube, Washington Sundar, Prasidh Krishna, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah (c), Ravi Bishnoi.
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