In a fitting conclusion to India‘s dominant 4-1 T20I series victory against Zimbabwe, Rinku Singh was honoured with the ‘Fielder of the Series’ award. The ceremony, which has become a tradition for the Indian cricket team, took place after the final match in Harare on Sunday.
The award was presented to Rinku by former India batting great and stand-in head coach VVS Laxman, who guided the team without ex-coach Rahul Dravid. Rinku’s consistent and impressive fielding efforts throughout the series, which included six catches, made him a deserving recipient of the medal.
The traditional medal ceremony
Before the ceremony, the Men in Blue watched a video from the India fielding coach, T Dilip, who emphasized the importance of fielding in modern cricket and the team’s commitment to excellence in this aspect of the game.
“Boys, fielding has always been a paramount to us in Indian cricket, and it’s an aspect of the game where we have set high standards over the years. We should aim to continue to strive for excellence in this area. As we all know, we follow a tradition, which is the fielding medal. The medal is given to a player that makes a significant impact in the game with their fielding,” Dilip said in the BCCI video.
Subhadeep Ghosh, who served as the fielding coach for the Zimbabwe series, praised each player’s contributions and highlighted the significance of taking catches to control and dominate matches.
“Another good day in fielding. I think it was a terrific effort from each and everyone. I think, in the last five months, we have been thrown into different scenarios and different challenges. As I always say, catching is very, very important. If you take the catches, you can control the game, and you can dominate the game, which we did today,” Ghosh said.
In his acceptance speech, Rinku expressed his joy at being part of the team and his love for both batting and fielding.
“I really enjoyed playing with everyone. It was my 4th or 5th series, so I really enjoyed it. To be honest, I like batting and fielding a lot. I enjoy it a lot. It’s a lot of fun. It’s a lot of fun to run. So, what else can I say, God’s Plan,” he said.
Here’s the video
Straight from Harare! 📍
A special video message followed by the Fielding Medal 🏅 Ceremony!
Class, Smiles & Generosity All Around! ☺️
Subhadeep Ghosh 🤝 T Dilip#TeamIndia | #ZIMvIND | @VVSLaxman281 | @rinkusingh235 pic.twitter.com/GBrtU85kUF
— BCCI (@BCCI) July 15, 2024
Also WATCH: Shubman Gill celebrates India’s T20I series win over Zimbabwe with his family
The period of transition in T20Is
The series victory marked the beginning of a new era for India in T20Is, with the team moving forward without the presence of stalwarts Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. Despite their absence, the team maintained its high standards and continued the tradition of honouring the best fielder.
India’s next assignment will be a tour of Sri Lanka at this month’s end, including three T20Is and three ODIs. This tour will be the first under the leadership of new head coach Gautam Gambhir, who will look to build on the team’s success in Zimbabwe.
