Former India and Kolkata Knight Riders opener Aakash Chopra has defended Rinku Singh against trolls who targeted him during his lean patch in the ongoing IPL 2026.
On Sunday night at Eden Gardens, Rinku led the Kolkata Knight Riders to a dramatic triumph over the Rajasthan Royals with an unbeaten 53 off 34 balls, flipping the narrative from failure to finisher.
Aakash Chopra showed his admiration for Rinku Singh, who was instrumental in the Kolkata Knight Riders' season-opening victory. The 28-year-old was fortunate when Rajasthan Royals dropped him on 8, and he took advantage, bringing KKR back from 84/6 in their chase of 156.
During the southpaw's recent decline in form, Chopra identified a concerning mindset that has surfaced: a classist nostalgia that suggests Rinku was a better cricket player when he was an underdog.
"I feel very good for Rinku because he was being trolled a lot. What all nonsense people say. I heard many say that 'Rinku was good when he was poor.' Aren't you ashamed while saying that? How will you feel if someone says the same thing about you?” Chopra said on his YouTube channel.
Despite Rinku's apparent struggles in the first five games of the 2026 season, Chopra was eager to remind detractors of the player's background. Rinku suffered a personal setback during India's T20 World Cup campaign just a few months ago.
According to Chopra, it is a collective memory failure to write off such a player as worthless after a few games.
"People said he is a useless player. People forgot that he is a world champion. He gets few chances. The number at which he bats, you aren't able to bat that well, and this team hasn't used him well. Everyone can go through a bad form. Rinku was trolled like he had murdered someone,” Chopra stated.
There is no space for error when you get to bat at number five or six, frequently with just a handful of balls left. Chopra said that Rinku's problems were made worse by KKR's inconsistent middle-order use earlier in the season, but supporters choose to focus on the player rather than the tactical arrangement.
