Rinku Singh's father passes away after prolonged battle with cancer

Indian player Rinku Singh's father passed away early this morning after a prolonged battle with cancer. Khanchand Singh, Rinku's father, was admitted at Yatharth hospital in Greater Noida where he breathed his last. Mr Singh was suffering from liver cancer which had advanced into the terminal phase recently.

Dr Sunil Kumar, a spokesperson for the hospital, shed light on the status of Mr Singh's health when he was admitted.

"His condition had deteriorated significantly in recent days, following which he had been admitted to the hospital on February 21. He was placed on ventilator support and breathed his last early this morning," Kumar said as quoted by The Hindu.

Meanwhile, Rinku had left the squad on February 24 to attend to his father and it was uncertain whether he would be available for the team's crucial game against Zimbabwe on February 26. Rinku did manage to join the squad back in time, but was not included in the playing XI. Incidentally, he was seen sitting in the dugout during the game as well as fielding as a substitute.

As a matter of fact, Mr Singh's funeral is being reported to be held in Aligarh, the family's hometown, and Rinku will be attending it.

A string of low scores for Rinku in T20 World Cup

Rinku has had a series of low scores - 6, 1, 11*, 6*, 0 - in the ongoing T20 World Cup 2026. However, it should also be noted that the southpaw has come in to bat at number six to eight in the tournament. As a result, the 28-year-old did not get enough balls to face with trying to find the boundary off every ball becoming the necessity.

Sanju Samson replaced the UP batter in the XI against Zimbabwe and the Kerala batter produced a cameo of 24 runs off 15 balls while opening the batting. The right-hander is expected to hold on to his spot in the next match against the West Indies which is a knockout clash.