Former Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) captain Virat Kohli turned throwdown specialist for his opening partner Phil Salt in the nets session ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 opener against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH). Kohli joined head coach Andy Flower to help Salt prepare for the IPL 2026 and often praised him for finding the middle of the bat.ย
On March 25, RCB posted a video of Kohli helping Salt gear up for the upcoming season at Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru. The video has went viral on social media -
Salt had a lacklustre run in the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026. He managed to score 130 runs from eight innings at an average of 16.25 and strike rate of 158.53. His only half-century of the edition came against co-hosts Sri Lanka in Pallekele. In his last three T20I innings, he registered scores of 0, 2 and 5 against Pakistan, New Zealand and India respectively. He and Jos Buttler struggled for the most part of the tournament.ย
RCB director on Salt's form
However, Salt has got the support of RCB team management. On March 24, RCB director of cricket, Mo Bobat brushed aside concerns around the 29-year-old's form.ย
"Someone like Phil Salt is still ranked among the top two or three T20 batters [No. 4] in the world, He also really enjoys being with RCB. He enjoys the franchise. He enjoys his partnership with Virat [Kohli]. He works very well with the likes of Andy and DK [Dinesh Karthik]. So, they're doing some really good work right now. And I'm pretty sure we'll see at the start of the season Phil Salt doing his thing. You know, I'm looking forward to watching him and Virat walk out to bat like they do. A couple of gladiators walking out, which is always exciting. And they'll be trying to put the opposition under pressure. We've got a lot of confidence in our team. In particular, with your question, we do have confidence in Phil Salt.'' Mo Bobat said at a press conference on Tuesday (March 24).
ย
ย
ALSO READ:ย After Livingstone, Bairstow slams England setup, unsure if his return 'is on their agenda'ย
Salt's IPL 2025 numbers
In the previous edition, Salt was RCB justified the hefty price tag, scoring 403 runs from 13 innings at an average of 33.58 and strike rate of 175.98. He scored four fifties in the season. Also, he flew back home before the IPL final for the birth of his child and rejoined the side.ย