IPL 2023: 5 teams that might target Phil Salt in auction

With the rising number of franchise leagues originating from England, local players have become habitual to fast-paced action. One prime example of such a player is Phil Salt, who is one of the finest young players in the Three Lions setup. Since entering domestic cricket in 2015/16, Salt has been consistent in delivering goods for Sussex and also made his international debut in 2021.

Earlier this year, Salt returned as the joint-highest run-scorer for England in the Netherlands ODI series with 248 runs in three innings. He continued his strong showing in T20 Blast, while scoring 390 runs in 14 innings. Further, he hit 353 runs in 10 innings and was the second-highest run-scorer in the Hundred 2022. With terrific white-ball proficiency, he must be on the radar among a few franchises.

1. Chennai Super Kings

Chennai Super Kings finished at the penultimate position in the table with four wins in 14 league matches in 2022. The team was inconsistent with their contributions in the batting department, despite the presence of experienced batters. They released Robin Uthappa ahead of the mini-auction, who played at the opening slot and the No.3/ No.4 position.

As the squad stands, Ruturaj Gaikwad and Devon Conway will continue to don the role of opener. However, management dropped Conway in a few of the matches last season due to his low scores. In this regard, Salt can be a backup opener for CSK, in case Conway fails to produce consistent performances.

Moreover, the franchise released overseas players like Adam Milne and Chris Jordan, while Dwayne Bravo is now the bowling coach. With Ravindra Jadeja and Maheesh Theekshana as the spin options, CSK might overlook Mitchell Santner and rather play with one overseas batter in form of Phil Salt, at the top or middle-order.