Secretary of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) Devajit Saikia expressed condolences to Indian cricketer Rinku Singh and his family after his father, Khanchand Singh, died following a prolonged battle with stage-4 liver cancer.
Rinku, who is currently part of India`s T20 World Cup squad, left Chennai at 5:00 am to rush to New Delhi, reported IANS. The left-handed batter is now believed to be on his way to his hometown, Aligarh, for the last rites of Khanchand.
BCCI secretary Saikia also confirmed that he will not be travelling with the team to Kolkata for their next Super Eights fixture against the West Indies, to be played on Sunday.
Devajit Saikia, while expressing grief about the sudden demise of Rinku’s father, said, “I would express my deepest condolences on behalf of BCCI to Rinku Singh and his whole family at this hour of crisis. He left for Delhi from Chennai at 5 am to rush to the hospital in Greater Noida, where his father was undergoing treatment, as per IANS.
“So, he will not be travelling with the Indian team to Kolkata on the flight scheduled for this afternoon. Once we get any updated information on Rinku, we`ll let you know,” Saikia added.
Rinku’s father was admitted in hospital on February 21
As reported by IANS, Khanchand had been admitted to Yatharth Hospital in Greater Noida on February 21 after his condition deteriorated significantly. He was placed on ventilator support before passing away in the early hours of Friday.
Rinku had previously been by his father`s side when his condition worsened, but rejoined the squad ahead of India`s match against Zimbabwe at the MA Chidambaram Stadium on Thursday.
Although the southpaw did not feature in the playing eleven, as Sanju Samson got the nod to play and open the batting alongside Abhishek Sharma.
India to face West Indies on Sunday
Defending champions India will face the West Indies in a virtual knockout clash on Sunday. With a semi-final spot at stake, the winner of Sunday’s match will join South Africa for the semi-finals from Group 1.
(With inputs from IANS)
