NEW DELHI: The 'Impact Player' rule, which has made IPL competitions virtually a "12-a-side affair", has offered a raw deal for power-hitter Rinku Singh, who has been included in the Indian main squad for the World T20. Couldn't make it. Cup because he did not have enough playing time.
The 26-year-old left-handed batsman from Aligarh, who caught the attention of the cricket world with five sixes in an over during the last IPL, replaced Shivam Dubey in the main national team while his name appeared among the reserve players.
Dubey got a chance due to more playing time for Chennai Super Kings during the first 1 matches of the league.
Those in the know of the selection meeting held in Ahmedabad on Tuesday unanimously agreed that Rinku became an easy omission for the panel as he could not be fitted into the same 15 with Hardik Pandya and Dubey."There is no doubt that Rinku has paid the price for the impact player rule. He is clearly unfortunate. Hardik may be out of form but he is still India's best sea-bowling all-rounder and leaving him out would have been a risk because He is the only person who has bowled,” said a BCCI source on condition of anonymity.
So how did the Impact Player rule become disastrous for Rinku?
Kolkata Knight Riders considered Rinku as a finisher and he never got a chance to bat in the top five.In the eight innings before selection, he played only 8 balls, which is almost 10 balls per innings.
The two Iyer's - Venkatesh and captain Shreyas - along with Angkris Raghuvanshi, who is nothing but a power-hitter, got the majority of the overs and ultimately left Rinku with very little time to do.
One cannot blame KKR for not promoting Rinku, but truth be told both Iyer's were never in contention for national selection. Their names were not even worth discussing.
On the contrary, Chennai Super Kings and their astute tactician Mahendra Singh Dhoni have been making maximum use of Dube since his arrival during the 2020 season.Dubey has played 203 balls in nine matches so far for CSK. That's almost 2 balls per game - 13 more than Rinku, which enabled him to hit 26 sixes in addition to 24 fours.
Rinku hit nine fours and six sixes in her 82 balls.
The 13 extra balls that Dubey got as an impact player made all the difference, especially on flat decks where anyone could hit through the line.
Rinku also did not get her fair share of batting on pitches where Raghuvanshi and Iyer took more balls.Dubey has not been bowling to his medium pacers as Dhoni has rightly decided that his bowling ability is not up to par with him and on most days, he will be a steady target for batsmen keen on range hitting.
Dhoni made the best use of Dubey and has been instrumental in getting him into the country's reckoning based on his core skill - power hitting on a slower deck.
Had there been no impact player rule, it is unclear whether Dhoni and current CS captain Ruturaj Gaikwad would have been able to use Dube in his current avatar.
Therefore, Rinku's strike rate of 176 in 15 matches for India till January 2024, which included two fifties, is not enough to earn her a place in the main team.
Just as Ambati Rayudu's omission was one of the most unfortunate decisions ahead of the 2019 ODI World Cup, one can only hope that Rinku's omission from the main squad does not end up being harakiri.With Rinku being part of the traveling reserves, he has a chance to be included in the 15 in case any of the first team members gets injured.
Apart from this, till May 23, the selectors will not need any reason for making changes in the team if they feel it is necessary.
The 26-year-old left-handed batsman from Aligarh, who caught the attention of the cricket world with five sixes in an over during the last IPL, replaced Shivam Dubey in the main national team while his name appeared among the reserve players.
Dubey got a chance due to more playing time for Chennai Super Kings during the first 1 matches of the league.
Those in the know of the selection meeting held in Ahmedabad on Tuesday unanimously agreed that Rinku became an easy omission for the panel as he could not be fitted into the same 15 with Hardik Pandya and Dubey."There is no doubt that Rinku has paid the price for the impact player rule. He is clearly unfortunate. Hardik may be out of form but he is still India's best sea-bowling all-rounder and leaving him out would have been a risk because He is the only person who has bowled,” said a BCCI source on condition of anonymity.
So how did the Impact Player rule become disastrous for Rinku?
Kolkata Knight Riders considered Rinku as a finisher and he never got a chance to bat in the top five.In the eight innings before selection, he played only 8 balls, which is almost 10 balls per innings.
The two Iyer's - Venkatesh and captain Shreyas - along with Angkris Raghuvanshi, who is nothing but a power-hitter, got the majority of the overs and ultimately left Rinku with very little time to do.
One cannot blame KKR for not promoting Rinku, but truth be told both Iyer's were never in contention for national selection. Their names were not even worth discussing.
On the contrary, Chennai Super Kings and their astute tactician Mahendra Singh Dhoni have been making maximum use of Dube since his arrival during the 2020 season.Dubey has played 203 balls in nine matches so far for CSK. That's almost 2 balls per game - 13 more than Rinku, which enabled him to hit 26 sixes in addition to 24 fours.
Rinku hit nine fours and six sixes in her 82 balls.
The 13 extra balls that Dubey got as an impact player made all the difference, especially on flat decks where anyone could hit through the line.
Rinku also did not get her fair share of batting on pitches where Raghuvanshi and Iyer took more balls.Dubey has not been bowling to his medium pacers as Dhoni has rightly decided that his bowling ability is not up to par with him and on most days, he will be a steady target for batsmen keen on range hitting.
Dhoni made the best use of Dubey and has been instrumental in getting him into the country's reckoning based on his core skill - power hitting on a slower deck.
Had there been no impact player rule, it is unclear whether Dhoni and current CS captain Ruturaj Gaikwad would have been able to use Dube in his current avatar.
Therefore, Rinku's strike rate of 176 in 15 matches for India till January 2024, which included two fifties, is not enough to earn her a place in the main team.
Just as Ambati Rayudu's omission was one of the most unfortunate decisions ahead of the 2019 ODI World Cup, one can only hope that Rinku's omission from the main squad does not end up being harakiri.With Rinku being part of the traveling reserves, he has a chance to be included in the 15 in case any of the first team members gets injured.
Apart from this, till May 23, the selectors will not need any reason for making changes in the team if they feel it is necessary.
