Why is Phil Salt not playing RCB vs GT Qualifier 1 of IPL 2026?
(Courtesy : BCCI/IPL)
Phil Salt has played six games for RCB in IPL 2026 so far.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) are clashing with Gujarat Titans (GT) in Qualifier 1 of the Indian Premier League 2026 tonight. The encounter is taking place at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium in Dharamsala.
Both RCB and Gujarat Titans finished in the top two positions in the points table with 18 points each. Now, they are just one step away from reaching the final of the tournament.
In Qualifier 1, GT won the toss and opted to bowl first. Notably, Phil Salt is not part of the RCB‘s playing XI in the encounter. He has played six games in IPL 2026.
Why is Phil Salt missing the RCB vs GT game?
Notably, Salt sustained a finger injury while fielding in the clash against Delhi Capitals (DC) on April 18. As a result, he returned to the United Kingdom for further scans and recovery of his injury.
He rejoined the RCB squad last week; however, he did not play in their last league match against Sunrisers Hyderabad.
It looks like Salt has not proved himself to be match-fit yet. Hence, RCB have rested him in Qualifier 1. In the pre-match conference, RCB captain Rajat Patidar mentioned that Salt is fit but is under medical observation.
“Salt is fit. He is under observation from the doctor. He has been participating in a few drills but we haven’t decided on our playing eleven yet. We will look at the wicket and decide,” he had said.
RCB used Jacob Bethell as an opener after Salt’s ouster. However, he failed to perform well. He has also sustained a finger injury and has been ruled out of the tournament. In the previous clash, Venkatesh Iyer was promoted as an opener.
Meanwhile, Salt has impressed with his performance so far, scoring 202 runs in six games with two half-centuries. He helped the team get off to a quick start in some matches.
Why is Phil Salt not playing in the RCB vs GT clash?
He has not become match-fit after recovering from his finger injury.
How many runs has Phil Salt scored in IPL 2026?
He has scored 202 runs in six matches.
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Vikas Singh Derek is a core cricket-lover since childhood and has always followed the sport both in his personal and professional life. He started his school life by watching cricket at home with family. Later, he played cricket on the field at local clubs during college. After his Master's in Journalism from Mumbai, he followed his passion by covering cricket news across various digital media. Since 2015, he has been an aspiring sports journalist and cricket content writer with over 50K+ articles.