Rinku Singh named Uttar Pradesh captain for Vijay Hazare Trophy 2024-25

Rinku Singh will lead UP for the first time in his career.

Left-handed batsman Rinku Singh will lead his state Uttar Pradesh in the upcoming Vijay Hazare Trophy 2024/25, which is India’s premier domestic 50-over competition.

He takes over the captaincy reins from pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who recently led UP to a quarter-final finish in the domestic T20 competition Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT) 2024-25.

This is the first time in his career that the 27-year-old Rinku will be captaining Uttar Pradesh at the senior level.

Earlier this year, he marched the Meerut Mavericks to the UPT20 League trophy. Leading from the front with the bat, Rinku smashed 210 runs in nine innings at a strike rate of 161.

Rinku said, “It was a big opportunity for me to lead Meerut Mavericks in the UPT20 League and I am happy that I could deliver. I really enjoyed captaincy as it allowed me to learn many things.

“I did try my hand at bowling [offspin] too at the UPT20 league. Present-day cricket demands a full package – a cricketer who can bat, bowl and field. Now, I am focusing on my bowling too. As captain of Uttar Pradesh, I have got bigger role to play and I’m ready for this.”

The Vijay Hazare Trophy will kick off on December 21 and run until January 18. UP are placed in Group D.

Uttar Pradesh squad for Vijay Hazare Trophy: Rinku Singh (C), Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Madhav Kaushik, Karan Sharma, Priyam Garg, Nitish Rana, Abhishek Goswami, Akshadeep Nath, Aryan Juyal, Aradhya Yadav, Saurabh Kumar, Kritagya Kumar Singh, Vipraj Nigam, Mohsin Khan, Shivam Mavi, Aquib Khan, Atal Behari Rai, Kartikya Jaiswal, Vineet Panwar.

Not thinking too much about the captaincy of KKR: Rinku Singh

Rinku has got the UP captaincy at an interesting time because his IPL franchise, Kolkata Knight Riders, are also on the hunt of a new skipper with the departure of Shreyas Iyer.

Rinku has been part of KKR since 2018 and has cemented his place in the first-choice XI. He was retained ahead of the mega auction for INR 13 crores. The left-hander said that KKR’s captaincy is not on his mind right now.

“I am not thinking too much about the captaincy of KKR in the new IPL season. I am focused on my plans for Uttar Pradesh as I want my team to regain the trophy we had won for the first time in 2015-16,” he said.

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