Rinku Singh reveals his biggest India dream, makes emotional Rohit-Virat wish for 2027 World Cup: ‘Who knows, it could be their last…’

Rinku Singh may have built his international reputation as an explosive T20 finisher, but the India batter does not want his career to be confined to the shortest format.

The left-hander has now spoken openly about one of his biggest ambitions — representing India in Test cricket.

Speaking to JioStar, Rinku acknowledged that there is a perception around him being a one-format cricketer. But he pointed towards his performances in domestic red-ball and 50-over cricket to argue that there is considerably more to his game than power-hitting at the death.

“There’s a bit of that perception that I’m just a one-format player,” Rinku said, before stressing that he plays all three formats in domestic cricket and dreams of wearing India’s Test whites one day.

Rinku’s domestic numbers tell a different story

The perception around Rinku Singh is understandable. His unforgettable five consecutive sixes for Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL 2023 turned him into a household name almost overnight, and his subsequent India opportunities have largely come in T20 cricket.

But his domestic numbers paint a broader picture.

Representing Uttar Pradesh, Rinku has accumulated 3,757 runs from 53 first-class matches, averaging an impressive 58.70, with nine centuries and 23 half-centuries.

His List A numbers are strong too. The left-hander has scored 2,418 runs from 70 matches, averaging 52.56, with two centuries and 21 fifties while maintaining a strike rate above 100.

At international level, Rinku has featured in 48 T20Is, scoring 702 runs at an average of 36.94 and a strike rate of 156.34. He has received far fewer opportunities in ODIs, appearing in only two matches so far.

For Rinku, those numbers are part of the reason he does not want the “T20 specialist” label to define what he can become.

“I can play all three formats, and I do play all three formats in domestic cricket. But for India, I play only one format at the moment,” he said.

Rinku has another dream — winning a World Cup for India

There is another label Rinku would eventually like to move beyond.

For millions of cricket fans, his name remains inseparable from those five sixes in one over against Gujarat Titans in Ahmedabad in 2023. Rinku appreciates what that moment did for his career, but he wants his legacy to become much bigger.

He told JioStar that he wants to be remembered for contributing to a World Cup-winning Indian team, rather than only for one extraordinary IPL finish.

That ambition also explains why the 2027 ODI World Cup carries special emotional significance for him.

‘Who knows, it could be their last World Cup’

Rinku also expressed his desire to see Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli feature in the 2027 ODI World Cup and finish the tournament by lifting the trophy for India.

“They are legends, both Virat bhaiya and Rohit bhaiya,” Rinku said, adding that the entire country would hope to see them at the tournament.

Then came the line that captured the emotion behind his wish: “Who knows, it could be their last World Cup.”

Rinku noted that India last lifted the men’s ODI World Cup in 2011, and said seeing Rohit and Kohli become part of another victorious campaign would be a huge moment both for them and the country.

The 2027 tournament is scheduled to be staged across South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia.

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Rohit and Kohli return to ODI action

The immediate focus for Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, however, is India’s upcoming home ODI series against the West Indies, beginning in Thiruvananthapuram on September 27.

Both senior batters are set to return to India’s ODI setup, which will be captained by Shubman Gill. Their form will inevitably remain closely watched with the 2027 World Cup now a little over a year away.

Rohit has already built an extraordinary ODI World Cup record, including finishing as the leading run-scorer at the 2019 World Cup with 648 runs and five centuries.

Kohli, meanwhile, has been one of the defining ODI batters of his generation and was a member of India’s 2011 World Cup-winning squad.

Whether both ultimately feature in the 2027 tournament will depend on selection, fitness, form and India’s plans closer to the competition. For Rinku, however, the wish is already clear: he wants to see two giants of Indian cricket get the opportunity to chase the trophy together.

Rinku wants his own story to grow

While much of the attention around his comments will understandably centre on Rohit and Kohli, Rinku’s remarks also reveal something significant about his own ambitions.

He does not see himself simply as a late-overs hitter.

From a possible Test debut to becoming a more established ODI cricketer and contributing to future World Cup success, Rinku is looking well beyond the role through which he first became famous.

His international career may have been built on T20 cricket so far, but his message is unmistakable: Rinku Singh believes he has the game for all three formats — and he wants the opportunity to prove it.