'He is under observation' - Rajat Patidar provides injury update on Phil Salt ahead of Qualifier 1 vs GT

Published - 26 May 2026, 11:17 IST | Updated - 26 May 2026, 11:58 IST

Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) captain Rajat Patidar has provided a crucial injury update surrounding Phil Salt’s availability for their Qualifier game against the Gujarat Titans in Dharamshala on Monday, May 26.

According to Patidar, Salt has returned to full fitness after his finger injury, and is under observation ahead of the game, whilst also taking part in training. The defending champions, however, have yet to decide on their team combination, with Patidar not revealing whether the England batter will feature against GT.

“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,” Patidar said, via NDTV.

Salt has not played for RCB since sustaining an injury in the field during their home game against the Delhi Capitals on April 18. In his absence, Jacob Bethell was tasked to open the innings alongside Virat Kohli. The left-handed batter, however, has returned to England after he picked up a finger injury.

With both Englishmen missing, RCB went with Venkatesh Iyer at the top of the order, with the former Kolkata Knight Riders star scoring 44 off just 19 balls against the Sunrisers Hyderabad in the previous game.

Should Salt be deemed fit to play against GT, the right-handed batter will walk in as the opener, prompting Iyer to drop down the order. He did score an unbeaten 73 against the Punjab Kings at the same venue as Qualifier 1 whilst batting at number four.

Salt has been an integral part of RCB’s recent success in the IPL, seeing them win their first title in 2025. The new Welsh Fire captain has scored 202 runs from six matches in the current season, striking at upwards of 168. This includes two half-centuries, against the Mumbai Indians and DC, the game in which he picked up his unfortunate injury.

Simon Doull backs Venkatesh Iyer over Phil Salt for Q1

RCB are gunning to become only the third team in IPL history to retain their title, joining the Chennai Super Kings and Mumbai Indians in doing so.