Not many players can say they have gone from being an uncapped youngster to a World Cup winner and a franchise vice-captain all within a few years, but Rinku Singh is not like most players.

KKR announced on Tuesday that Rinku will be their vice-captain for IPL 2026, with Venky Mysore making it official at the Knights Unplugged 3.0 event at Eden Gardens. For anyone who has followed Rinku’s journey with Kolakata Knight Riders, this moment feels long overdue.

IPL 2026: Rinku Singh steps into the vice-captaincy role for KKR

Rinku has been part of the Kolkata Knight Riders family since 2018 and over the years he has quietly become one of the most important players in their dressing room.

Last season Venkatesh Iyer held the vice-captaincy but after a tough year with the bat he was released by the franchise and eventually snapped up by Royal Challengers Bengaluru for INR 7 crore. That opened the door for Rinku and Kolkara Knight Riders did not hesitate.

The franchise had already shown how much they value him by retaining him for INR 13 crore ahead of this season, so handing him the vice-captaincy alongside captain Ajinkya Rahane felt like the most natural next step.

Mysore put it simply at the event, Rinku came on board in 2018 and now he will be the vice-captain working closely with Rahane. Simple words but for Rinku and everyone who has watched his journey, they mean everything.

What Rinku singh means to Kolkata Knight Riders

You cannot talk about Rinku Singh without going back to that over in Ahmedabad in 2023. KKR needed 29 off the last over, the game looked gone, and then Rinku happened, five sixes off Yash Dayal in a row, one of the most insane finishes IPL has ever seen.

That night changed everything for him. From that moment on he was not just a player, he was a feeling for KKR fans. He went on to be part of the title-winning squad in 2024, then played his part in India’s T20 World Cup triumph this year, and now comes the vice-captaincy.

In 59 IPL matches he has scored 1,099 runs at an average of 30.53 and a strike rate of 145.18, numbers that back up every bit of trust KKR have placed in him.

The franchise also has a fresh coaching setup this season with Abhishek Nayar as head coach, Shane Watson as assistant, Dwayne Bravo as mentor and Andre Russell as power-hitting coach.