Ahead of their highly anticipated Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 clash at Kolkata’s Eden Gardens Stadium on Sunday (April 21), Kolkata Knight Riders’ (KKR) batter, Rinku Singh, shared a poignant moment with Royal Challengers Bangalore’s (RCB) legendary cricketer, Virat Kohli.

The back story

Rinku revealed to Kohli the unfortunate news that the bat gifted to him by Kohli had been damaged. This heartwarming gesture had its roots in a previous encounter between the two teams at M Chinnaswamy Stadium on March 29. Following that match, Kohli had graciously presented his own bat to Singh, eliciting joy and gratitude from the KKR player as they shared a warm embrace.

Rinku Singh’s optimism

In a video shared on KKR’s official X (formerly Twitter) handle, Rinku explained to Kohli how the bat was broken while hitting a spinner. Kohli, ever the empathetic sportsman, engaged in a conversation with Rinku, expressing concern and a willingness to rectify the situation. Despite the setback, Rinku’s optimism shone through as he playfully hinted at the prospect of receiving another bat from Kohli, even practicing with the senior player’s bat while inquiring, “Are you sending it?” Kohli’s response, “Whom am I sending it to?” echoed with a mix of amusement and genuine interest.

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Virat Kohli’s response

Towards the end of their exchange, Kohli, though visibly frustrated, maintained a mentor-like demeanor as he admonished Rinku for the untimely breakage of the bat given to him in the previous match. His words carried a weight of responsibility, as he remarked, “You took the bat in the previous match. Now you want a second bat in the second game? Because of you, I face consequences later.” Despite the disappointment, Kohli did not immediately replace the bat in the video. However, speculation loomed over whether he would decide to gift Singh another bat after the match.

Here’s the video:

KKR vs RCB: Memories of the previous encounter linger

As KKR prepared to lock horns with RCB for the second time in the IPL season, memories of their previous encounter lingered. Despite Kohli’s stellar performance, scoring 83 runs off 59 balls, KKR emerged victorious, chasing down a target of 183 with 3.1 overs to spare, propelled by standout performances from Venkatesh Iyer (50), Sunil Narine (47) and skipper Shreyas Iyer (39).

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