Rinku Singh’s journey has always been one of silent sacrifice. On February 27, the story lost one of its strongest pillars when his father, Khanchandra Singh, died after battling stage 4 liver cancer at Greater Noida’s Yatharth Hospital.
The news came when Rinku was in the middle of the ongoing T20 World Cup campaign in Indiabalancing national duty with a deeply personal struggle at home. He had previously traveled back briefly when his father’s condition worsened before the Super 8 clash against Zimbabwe before rejoining the team in Chennai.
Khanchandra was on ventilator support and undergoing round-the-clock renal therapy for the past few days, but his health was rapidly deteriorating. The loss now casts a shadow over what was otherwise a dreamy rise for Rinka, built on years of work, faith and resilience. Rinku Singh often credited his father for his rise. (Photo: Instagram/Rinku Singh)
To many fans, Rinku is a calm finisher who thrives under pressure. But long before packed stadiums and Indian caps, his story began in the narrow lanes of Aligarh, where his father earned a living by delivering LPG cylinders.
Even as Rinku went on to represent his country on the big stage, Khanchandra remained grounded in his routine, continued to work for his son’s success, and left only when illness overcame him. It was a quiet reminder that for families like theirs, cricketing glory was built on endurance as much as talent.
After news of his death broke, messages of support poured in from across the cricketing world.
Former India all-rounder Yuvraj Singh termed the loss as heartbreaking and expressed his solidarity with the family, while Harbhajan Singh spoke about the emotional weight of such a moment.
BCCI Vice President Rajiv Shukla also expressed his condolences, describing the loss as deeply saddening and praying for strength to the bereaved family.
FROM ROLLERS TO CRICKET DREAMS
Long before the IPL was the spotlight and the Indian challenge, Khanchandra Singh spent his days delivering LPG cylinders to Indan. It was hard physical work that brought home around Rs 12,000 a month, enough to keep the household running but not enough to fulfill her big dreams.
The family lived in a small two-room apartment provided by the gas agency. Back then, cricket didn’t seem like a career. It felt more like a distraction from everyday survival. Rinku Singh’s family. (Photo: Instagram/Rinku Singh)
In the early days, Khanchandra was not fully convinced of Rinku’s growing love for cricket. Stability was safer than ambition. But that started to change the day he watched the school finals where Rinku received the Man of the Match award. When he saw it with his own eyes, hesitation slowly turned into belief.
His support has never been loud. It showed in small, steady ways, letting Rinka attend training, making sure school continued and quietly managing the extra costs that cricket brought with it.
A few years later, Rinku bought a new house for the family and named it after his mother. And when a video of Khanchandra riding a Kawasaki Ninja gifted by his son went viral, the smile on his face said what words couldn’t.
FATHER’S LEGACY BEHIND CRICKET
Khanchandra did not shape Rinka in technique or tactics. He shaped it with life.
Discipline, patience, staying grounded even when the reward takes time, these were the lessons away from the cricket fields. Even after Rinku became an Indian cricketer, his father continued to work, sticking to the same routine that had followed the family for years.
He only left when illness forced him to do so. By this time, Rinku had come into his own, but the values he carried remained the same.
As India moves through the crucial stages of the T20 World Cup, there is uncertainty over the availability of the Rink. But beyond team sheets and roles, this moment is about something deeper.
Rink’s calm finish and undisturbed rise lead back to a man who spent years lifting rollers so his son could lift a bat.
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Issued by:
Debodinna Chakraborty
Published on:
27 Feb 2026 13:29 IST
