IPL 13: KKR Batsman Rinku Singh Hails Explosive Power Hitter Andre Russell As Best All-Rounder In The World

Russell had a stellar outing for KKR in the last edition of the IPL, amassing a whopping 510 runs from 14 matches at a staggering strike rate of 204.81. The Jamaican all-rounder was also the leading wicket-taker for KKR with 11 scalps to his name in the last edition.

Andre Russell (Image: AFP / Getty)

Kolkata Knight Riders will begin their campaign in the thirteenth edition of the Indian Premier League against on defending champions Mumbai Indians on September 23rd at 7:30 pm in Abu Dhabi. The 2-time champions (2012 and 2014) once again look a formidable side with a fine sembalance of domestic and international stars in their ranks. Ahead of the IPL 13, KKR batsman Rinku Singh showered praises on his fellow team mate and star allrounder Andre Russell stating that there is no one in the league who can match the sheer hitting prowess of the Windies power hitter and felt that the explosive all-rounder remains the World's best all-rounder at the moment. The strongly built Russell, who was snapped up by KKR in 2014, has been arguably one of the most destructive power hitters in the last two seasons of the league and will once again be critical to the team's fortunes with both the bat and ball for his side. "There is no one who can hit the ball better than him. He has a lot of life and strength in him," Singh said in an interview on KKR's website. Russell had a stellar outing for KKR in the last edition of the IPL, amassing a whopping 510 runs from 14 matches at a staggering strike rate of 204.81. The Jamaican all-rounder was also the leading wicket-taker for KKR with 11 scalps to his name in the last edition. "His sixes are massive and I just don’t see any batsman as a competition to him. He is the best all-rounder in the world at this moment," Singh said. The 22-year-old Singh added that he gelled well with Russell from the first season despite his lack of proficiency in English. "I haven't really spoken much with him because I can’t speak in English that well. But yeah, the first year we enjoyed a lot on his birthday in our room," Singh said. "We even partied and danced together. So, I guess we started bonding well afterwards." Singh who was snapped up by KKR in the 2018 edition of the league had finished as the leading run-scorer for Uttar Pradesh in the group-stage of the Syed Mushtaq Tophy with 803 runs in nine matches. Crediting the turnaround to his training at KKR Academy under Abhishek Nayar, Singh said: "I didn't do well in the one-dayers (before Ranji Trophy) and I had spoken to Abhishek sir about it. He called me over and we trained a lot. "I don't think I have ever batted so much in my life as much as I did there. For almost 5 hours every day, I used to continue batting and my hands even bled at times. The perseverance paid off in the Ranji Trophy later that season," said Singh, who finished the tournament with 953 runs in 10 matches.