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Rinku Singh powers KKR to maiden win of IPL 2026 
Rinku led KKR's fightback with an unbeaten 53

Rinku Singh powers KKR to maiden win of IPL 2026 

Apr 19, 2026
07:54 pm

What's the story

Rinku Singh starred in Kolkata Knight Riders' maiden win of the 2026 Indian Premier League (IPL) on April 19. Rinku smashed a stellar 53* (34) after KKR slumped to 85-6 while chasing 156 against Rajasthan Royals. He added a 76-run stand off 37 balls with Anukul Roy. While KKR finally opened their account, Rinku recorded his maiden half-century of IPL 2026.

Knock

Rinku rescues KKR

After a poor start in the Powerplay, KKR were six down before the 100-run mark. With KKR requiring 69 runs off 36 balls, an out-of-form Rinku struggled to find boundaries. The Indian batter, who was at 13 off 14 balls, upped the ante by attacking Ravi Bishnoi and Jofra Archer in successive balls. This brought the required run-rate down.

Information

Rinku seals chase with six 

Archer bowled the penultimate over as KKR required 21 runs to win. Anukul's audacious maximum left 11 runs in the final over. Smashing Brijesh Sharma for successive boundaries, Rinku showed his class. He smacked a six to seal the match.

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Milestone

Rinku attains these feats

Rinku's unbeaten 53 was studded with 5 fours and 2 sixes. According to Cricbuzz, this is the fourth-highest score for KKR at No. 6 or below in a successful IPL run-chase. Andre Russell tops this list with an unbeaten 70 (31) against Punjab Kings in 2022. Rinku's unbeaten 76-run stand was the highest for the seventh wicket or lower in a successful IPL run-chase.

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Numbers

A look at his numbers

Rinku finally ended his run drought this season with his maiden half-century. Overall, this was his fifth 50-plus score in the tournament. He has raced to 1,231 runs at a strike rate of 143.47. He also completed 100 IPL fours. Rinku, who has become India's mainstay T20I finisher, now has 3,591 T20 runs with a strike rate of 146-plus.

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