Century-Unsold-Century: Tale of England opener Phil Salt who went unsold in the IPL 2024 auction

Phil Salt was part of the Delhi Capitals in the IPL 2023 and played 9 games.

Even after smashing two back-to-back hundreds in the T20I series against West Indies, English wicket-keeper and opener Phil Salt remained empty-handed at the IPL mini-auction 2024 held in Dubai. Salt played a blistering knock of unbeaten 109 runs to help England chase a massive total of 223 runs in the 3rd T20I a day before the auction and then went on to smash 119 runs in 57 balls in the 4th T20I right after the IPL mini-auction. 

Phil Salt’s performance went unnoticed and he remained unsold in the IPL mini-auction 2024. At first, when he went unsold it was expected that he might get a buyer in the accelerated process, but no team showed any interest in the 27-year-old right-hander. Salt himself was disappointed after getting zero interest from IPL teams in the auction and expressed that he was confused after the IPL mini-auction 2024 in Dubai. 

Possible reasons why Phil Salt remained unsold

The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) are still unsure about their player’s participation in the IPL as they have kept it on a conditional basis. ECB will be planning and preparing for the upcoming T20 World Cup 2024 and Salt is a key member of the English T20I side. This might have put him in a bit of a clash between the player’s national interest and franchise interests in the IPL. This factor might have a major role in Salt not attracting any bid from IPL teams.

Apart from ECB’s conditions, Phil Salt’s base price was also on a slightly higher side as he kept himself at the bracket of 1.50 Crore INR. With teams spending cautiously on key players like Rachin Ravindra, Gerald Coetzee, Rovman Powell, and Travis Head, no franchises would have wanted to spend the same amount on an English wicket-keeper who has played just one IPL season in his career. Salt has played just 9 IPL games in his career so far. 

Phil Salt did well for Delhi Capitals in the IPL 2023 and scored 218 runs in his 9 games. Salt’s strike rate has been outstanding at 163.91 with two half-centuries in 9 innings. Salt has been a prolific scorer for England in T20I games as well. He has so far played 20 games for England and scored 601 runs with 2 centuries and 2 half-centuries in his international career. Salt’s two centuries came in the IPL 2024 mini-auction period in December 2023.

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