Phil Salt out of GT vs RCB match, Jacob Bethell to continue as Virat Kohli’s opening partner

The Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) won’t have the services of Phil Salt for the Gujarat Titans (GT) match on April 30 in Ahmedabad. After a lukewarm start to the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 season, 54 runs in 3 matches, Salt had picked up form, scoring 148 runs in his next 3 games.

Phil Salt’s injury persists

Before RCB was to host GT on April 24, Salt injured himself during practice. The reigning champions didn’t reveal the nature of the injury, which created uncertainty regarding his return. As a result, Salt’s fellow England teammate, Jacob Bethell, replaced him as the opener against GT.

Salt was expected to be available for the Delhi Capitals (DC) match on April 27, but he didn’t play. Now, according to TV9 Kannada, Salt won’t be fit for the away game against GT at the Narendra Modi Stadium. As mentioned, there’s no idea about Salt’s injury.

No one knows whether it was a niggle, which has taken a long time for him to recover from, or a serious injury, which could potentially rule him out for the remainder of the IPL 2026 season. If it’s the former, RCB could have him back after the GT game, as they’ll have a 6-day break with the Lucknow Super Giants match scheduled for May 7 at the Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow. If the latter’s true, RCB will have to look for replacements.

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