R Ashwin has called Rinku Singh a “left-handed MD Dhoni” after his exploits in the recently-concluded T20I series against Afghanistan.

The rise of Rinku Singh continues, adding more layers and hues on the way. From a staple rags-to-riches story and the plotter of one of the most thrilling climaxes in the Indian Premier League, he has emerged as a serious T20 batsman, relishing the complex challenges of batting at No.5 in the shortest format of the game, and taking giant strides towards making himself an undroppable in the eleven.

In less than a year since making his debut, Rinku has established himself at No 6 for India in the T20 Internationals. In 15 matches, the southpaw has amassed 356 runs with an average of 89.00 and a strike rate of 176.23.

“He is somebody I’d call a left-handed Dhoni. I can’t compare him to Dhoni just yet because Dhoni is too big. But, I am talking about the composure that he brings,” R Ashwin said on his YouTube channel.

“He has been consistently scoring buckets of runs for UP and broke his way into the Indian team. He was on the KKR bench for many years,” he said.

Ashwin also narrates a story how the Uttar Pradesh lad has won over the KKR management with his sportsmanship.

“People used to tell me that, when he was at KKR, even though he couldn’t get the chance to bat at practice, he collected all the balls that batters hit in throwdowns and gave them back to the bowler,” Ashwin said.

“Since then, he has been with the franchise for so long, put in the hard work for UP and showed that he’s always available to get to the Indian team out of a tricky situation or finish an innings.

“The composure doesn’t change whether the team is batting first or chasing. His composure towards the back end of the innings is a bonus,” added Ashwin.

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