“Big player bhai” – Yash Dayal’s chat with Rinku Singh goes viral after he concedes five sixes against KKR superstar during IPL 2023 game
Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) batter Rinku Singh registered his name in the IPL history books when he chased down a record 29 runs in the 20th over. The jaw-dropping performance came against the defending champions Gujarat Titans (GT) at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Sunday, April 9.
Rinku smashed five consecutive sixes when Kolkata required 28 runs off their last five deliveries, scripting one of the best run chases in the tournament's history.
GT’s Yash Dayal was on the receiving end of Rinku's wrath. He also became the second-most expensive IPL bowler, giving away 69 runs in his four overs. The 25-year-old looked extremely disappointed while his GT teammates consoled him after the game finished.
Rinku’s heroics with the bat came two days after Dayal congratulated him for his 46 off 33 balls in a match-winning cause against the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) at the Eden Gardens.
The left-handed batter shared a 103-run partnership with Shardul Thakur for the sixth wicket to help KKR fight back and post 204/7 after a batting collapse. Kolkata won that game by 81 runs.
In an Instagram post, Rinku Singh thanked fans as Eden Gardens hosted an IPL game three years after the COVID-19 pandemic. The 25-year-old captioned the post:
“Memorable victory. Special mention to all our wonderful fans for turning up in huge numbers and having our back.”
In response, Yash Dayal wrote:
“Big player bhai.”
Rinku acknowledged the response and replied:
“Bhai,” with love and clap emojis.
Rinku Singh's success with the bat is nothing new. He amassed 174 runs in seven games at a strike rate of 148.72 last season too. KKR retained him for ₹55 lakh ahead of the IPL 2023 mini-auction.
Rinku Singh smashes 48 off 21 balls as KKR beat GT by three wickets
Chasing 205, Rinku Singh smashed 48 runs off just 21 balls to help Kolkata Knight Riders defeat Gujarat Titans by three wickets on Sunday. Venkatesh Iyer also starred with the bat, scoring 83 off just 40 deliveries.
Captain Nitish Rana, who had a sedate campaign until then, also contributed 45 off 29 balls. Iyer and Rana set the platform for Rinku, sharing a century partnership for the third wicket to help KKR recover from 28/2.
For GT, stand-in captain Rashid Khan took the first hat-trick of the ongoing IPL 2023. The spin wizard dismissed Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, and Shardul Thakur during the 17th over.
Earlier, Vijay Shankar’s quickfire 63 off 24 balls and Sai Sudharsan’s 53 off 38 deliveries helped GT post 204/4 in their allotted 20 overs. Sunil Narine emerged as the pick of the bowlers for KKR, returning with figures of 3/33, while Suyash Sharma took a solitary wicket.