In a big blow for Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), left-handed explosive opener Phil Salt is not part of the playing XI in today’s important IPL 2025 match against the Delhi Capitals (DC) at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi. At the toss, which RCB’s captain Rajat Patidar won, the captain confirmed that Salt was ruled out due to being ill, specifically suffering from a fever; hence Salt’s absence in this crucial match.
The absence of Salt is a huge setback for RCB because of the form that he has shown us this season. The English wicketkeeper-batsman has scored 239 runs in nine innings at an interesting strike rate of 168.30 including two half-centuries with some explosive starts. Basically, he has been a pretty important player in RCB’s desire to win by giving the team a fast start almost in every match!
Filling in for Salt will be fellow Englishman Jacob Bethell who will be playing his first IPL game today. The 21-year-old left-handed allrounder had a glimmer of form in the domestic circuits before and in his 63 T20 matches has scored 1,127 runs at a strike rate of 136.77 with seven half-centuries. He has also been effective in the bowl as he has taken 11 wickets in 20 innings. RCB will be relying upon Bethell to make up the void for Salt in their batting order.
This match carries a lot of weight for both squads, as both are seeking to hold a position atop the points table. RCB and DC are now seated in the third and second positions, both at 12 points earned. This would become a new top dog with the ticker and 14, before the bolstering of other squads started becoming apparent.
Additionally, while the match goes on, RCB fans would be hoping for Bethell to take this opportunity and run with it so RCB could be competitive while Salt is absent, while managers and fans are hoping for the best recovery possible to Salt and hoping he can return to the starting line up immediately for the up and coming matches.
