Kolkata Knight Riders all-rounder Rinku Singh was at his best on Sunday as he slammed five sixes in the final five balls to help his side register a historic three-wicket victory over defending champions Gujarat Titans in an IPL 2023 game. KKR needed 29 runs off the final over and barely anyone would have imagined the side to win the game. Umesh Yadav took a single on the first ball to give the strike to Rinku, who slammed five sixes off the last five balls to take his side home.
The win definitely made Rinku a hero, but left-arm GT pacer Yash Dayal, who was at the receiving end of his carnage in the final over, was visibly gutted.
During a recent interview, Rinku, who shared the Uttar Pradesh dressing room with Yash Dayal in domestic cricket, revealed how he consoled the southpaw.
"I texted Yash after the game, saying it happens in cricket, you did really well last year, I just tried to motivate him a little," said Rinku Singh in an interview to India Today.
Earlier, the KKR franchise had also taken their time out after the game to console Dayal with a sweet message.
"Chin up, lad. Just a hard day at the office, happens to the best of players in cricket. You're a champion, Yash, and you're gonna come back strong," said KKR in a tweet.
The first three deliveries that Rinku faced in the last over were all full-tosses and the batter made no mistake in dispatching them for sixes.
With 10 runs needed off 2 balls, Dayal bowled a slower length ball, but Rinku hit that too over the fence. The final ball of the match was once again a back-of-the-length slower ball and Rinku with the nerves of steel slammed it over long-on to seal the game for KKR.