Team India batter Rinku Singh credited former captain MS Dhoni for helping him staying calm despite the situation as he revealed it after the 1st T20I against Afghanistan in Mohali on Thursday. The left-handed batter revealed that he spoke to Dhoni in IPL 2023 and revealed that the keeper-batter told him that it is up to the bowler to react however he sees it okay.

Rinku has indeed been a revelation since making his T20I debut last year. The southpaw has kept a strike rate of 180 in the format along with a solitary half-century. He stayed till the end with Shivam Dube on Thursday in Mohali to seal the match for Team India, remaining unbeaten at 16 off 9 balls.

Speaking to Jio Cinema after the match, the 26-year-old reveals that he enjoys batting at No.6 and keeps himself calm, given the unpredictability of situations while batting at this position. The Uttar Pradesh-born cricketer suggested that he carries Dhoni’s advice in every game.

“Habit ho gayi hai is number pe khelne ki aur finish karne ki. Maza aata hai is number pe khelne pe aur enjoy karta hoon apne game ko. Kaafi maza aaya, enjoy kar raha tha, fielding pe bahut ball lag rahi thi, magar kisi ko dikha nahin. Main apne aap se baat karta rehta hoon kyunki is number pe kuch bhi ho sakta hai, run thode zyaada chahiye honge. Main yahin sochta hoon jitna shaant reh sakun, apne aap se baat kar sakun, main vahi sab apply karta hoon. Pichle IPL mein Mahi bhai se baat kari thi. Unhone bataya jitna aap calm rahoge, shaant rahoge, koi reaction nahin doge, bowler ko karne do jo karna hai. Aapko jaisa ball aa raha hai vaise hee react karo. Toh main vahi follow karta hoon.”

(Enjoying batting at this number. Making it a habit of staying not out. Enjoyed batting in the cold a lot. While fielding the ball was hurting and nobody could see much out there (laughs). I try to talk to myself, and tell myself that anything can happen when I bat at No. 6. In the last IPL, I spoke to Mahi bhai, and he said the more you remain calm the better it is. Try to see what the bowler is doing and react accordingly. If I think too much things can go wrong for me (laughs), so I see what the bowler is doing instead).

Shivam Dube wins the Player of the Match for his all-round efforts:

Nevertheless, it was Shivam Dube, who won the Player of the Match award as he struck 60 off 40 deliveries, including hitting the winning runs. The all-rounder also picked a wicket in the first over he sent down.

Earlier, the 68-run partnership between Azmatullah Omarzai and Mohammad Nabi was integral in pushing Afghanistan past 150. The cameo by Najibullah Zadran to cart Arshdeep Singh for 15 runs in the final over was equally critical.