Rinku Singh is hoping to see Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma take India to the World Cup title in 2027 in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia. The southpaw wants to change his image as a single-format player and earn a Test cap. Rinku has represented India in 48 T20Is and two ODIs so far. He was part of the squad that won the 2026 T20 World Cup at home earlier this year.

“They both are legends”: Rinku backs Virat and Rohit

Rinku Singh is in favour of Virat and Rohit Sharma travelling to Africa for the global tournament next year and believes their presence would be good for the team and the country.

“Virat bhaiya and Rohit bhaiya are legends of the game. Not just me, but the entire country is hoping to see them competing in the World Cup and be part of the victorious team,” Rinku said on JioStar.

“It is going to be a big moment for India as it could be their last World Cup. It would be huge if they can win it for the nation. It would be a great moment as we haven’t won an ODI World Cup for a long time, with our last win coming in 2011.

We hope they travel with the team and lift the trophy,” he added.

Rinku wants to be remembered for World Cup victories

Rinku became a household name after five consecutive sixes in Kolkata Knight Riders’ win over Gujarat Titans in the IPL 2023.

The batter wants to be remembered for more than one memorable moment.

“People know me because of my five sixes in an over in the IPL. I want to win the World Cup for India and the team. I want people to remember me for other contributions rather than those five sixes.”

“I want to play all the formats”

Rinku is a finisher in T20 cricket but was recently dropped from the squad for the Zimbabwe T20I series. The batter wants to change the perception of being a white-ball specialist and highlighted his record in domestic List A cricket and four-day games.

“People think that I am a one-format player, but you can look at my domestic average in ODIs and four-day games. I have a dream of playing Test matches for India.

“It is not right to call me a single-format player. I can play all formats of the game, and I am playing all formats in domestic cricket.

But I play just one format for India.”

Rinku learning about captaincy

Rinku also opined on his development as a leader, saying he is still learning from experienced captains in domestic and franchise tournaments.

“I am still growing as a leader. I was a captain in the UP League, and I led my team to the title. I was the vice-captain in IPL 2025.

“I am learning the captaincy traits from Ajju bhai (Ajinkya Rahane) at KKR and many others. I have played a lot of cricket with Surya bhai (Suryakumar Yadav), and I keep observing him in the Indian team and how he leads.

I am working hard on my leadership skills, and hopefully something good would come up for me as far as captaincy is concerned.”

‘There was a time I had nothing’

Rinku reflected on his cricketing journey. He is a grounded cricketer because of his humble beginnings. “I didn’t have much when I started playing cricket, but I have now reached here. I didn’t have money, and this thought keeps coming to my mind.

“Whenever I achieve something, I think about my struggles in the past and how far I have come in my career. It is all god’s blessing. So I keep looking back at where I started.”