Rinku Singh’s roaring bat. (Photo- PTI)
Rinku Singh IND vs NZ 1st T20I: In the first match of the 5-match T20 series, the teams of India and New Zealand faced each other at the Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium in Nagpur. In this match, New Zealand won the toss and chose to bowl first, but the Indian bowlers proved this decision of the Kiwi team wrong and put a big total on the board. Team India made its biggest score till date against New Zealand in this match, in which Abhishek Sharma and Rinku Singh had important contributions.
Rinku Singh’s roaring bat
Batting first in this match, Team India scored 238 runs losing 7 wickets in 20 overs. During this, Rinku Singh created a storm in the last overs. Rinku scored unbeaten 44 runs, which came in just 20 balls. He hit 4 fours and 3 sixes during this innings. His fast batting took India beyond 200. Rinku scored these runs at a strike rate of 220.00. This innings was special for him in many ways, because he is not able to make a place in the team continuously. But this time he took full advantage of the opportunity.
Before this, Abhishek Sharma created a stir in the very beginning of the match. He scored 84 runs in just 35 balls, which included 5 fours and 8 sixes. His innings gave a strong base to India and the team added 68 runs in the powerplay. Abhishek completed his half-century in 22 balls. Even though he missed a century, his aggressive batting completely changed the course of the match. Suryakumar Yadav also scored 32 runs on 22 balls. Apart from these, Hardik Pandya contributed 25 runs.
Team India hit a total of 14 sixes
The Indian team hit a total of 14 sixes in this match. In which Abhishek’s 8 sixes were the highest, while Rinku’s 3 sixes made the finishing strong. Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya and Shivam Dubey also hit one six each. This innings is a great sign for the preparations for the T20 World Cup 2026, where the Indian team will try to defend its title.