Phil Salt ready to make a mark on this T20 World Cup after playing a bit-part role in England’s 2022 title.
For Phil Salt, this one has greater significance.
Salt, who has already won the World Cup, played a little role in England’s victory in 2022. He entered the starting lineup in the semi-final, did not bat against India, and then scored ten runs at No. 3 in the final match against Pakistan at the MCG.
Since then, he has developed into one of the world’s best T20 openers, and he sees this as his opportunity to support an England team and help them win the World Cup.
“Yes, definitely,” Salt says of whether victory here would feel different. “That’s a massive source of motivation for myself. Obviously, I started that World Cup in Australia out of the team. Hopefully, I start this one in the team and put a stamp on it. It’s really simple.”
Salt is an undeniable world-class opener for England. More than anybody else in the globe, Salt has opened the batting in Twenty20 cricket since the beginning of 2023. Additionally, he has scored more runs from the position. In second position, he is about 500 runs clear of Faf du Plessis.
When you focus solely on international cricket, Salt’s pure air becomes much more noticeable. There are the others, Phil Salt, and Abhishek Sharma when you simply look at nation against nation.
With a strike-rate of 169.50, Salt is the only player in the world who is nearly at 170. On 197.30, Abhishek is working in his own universe.
“I’d like to catch him,” Salt jokes of Abhishek, who is currently ranked as the ICC’s No.1 T20 batter in the world, with Salt second. “That’s been my goal for a while, even when Suryakumar Yadav was number one. A completely different batter, but I still wanted to catch him.
“I really like watching him bat, I’ll be honest with you. Last night, I was disappointed because he got out early.
“The fact that he can hit the first ball for six like that, the way he runs down the wicket, fights that line from really straight to get it over the offside, but then also hits a ball wide to him over the leg side. It’s completely different. I’m never going to be him. He’s never going to be me. But I do enjoy watching him bat.”