England opener Phil Salt has spoken out on his “personal experience” of playing under Kolkata Knight Riders head coach Chandrakant Pandit in the Indian Premier League (IPL 2024). KKR won the tournament under Pandit’s guidance and Gautam Gambhir’s mentorship.
During IPL 2024, reports circulated on social media that international players in the KKR camp were dissatisfied with Chandrakant’s violent manner of operation. However, Salt did not have the same experience as Chandrakant during his time with KKR in the IPL 2024.
The 27-year-old praised Chandrakant for his exceptional coaching abilities and added that he has a “great relationship” with the KRK coach as well.
“That’s not my personal experience. I can say that you know we got on from day one. No, he’s a man that reads a room very well. He knows when to have an arm around you, knows when to pull your tail a bit. I think that’s now a trait that all good coaches have. You know, I’ve got a great relationship with him and still swap texts with him. You know, he watches a lot of cricket. He’s always in touch, so a great man,” Salt said during the CEAT Cricketing Rating Awards.
Phil Salt was a late replacement in IPL 2024 for the KKR team. However, he proved to be a great pick, as he slammed 435 runs in 12 matches, averaging 39.55 while scoring runs effortlessly at a whopping strike rate of 182.01.
“I was disappointed”- Phil Salt on having to leave IPL 2024 before playoffs
However, despite these good numbers, Phil Salt had to leave the IPL 2024 before KKR played the playoffs. This was because the ECB recalled all the England players back for their home T20I series against Pakistan, just before the T20 World Cup 2024.
Salt left the KKR camp, and Afghanistan’s Rahmanullah Gurbaz took his place. The 27-year-old was “disappointed” because he believed a job was left undone.
“I think if you put any work into a competition, especially the IPL. You want to play every game that’s what’s in you as a professional sportsman. I want to play the big games. I want to play all the high-pressure games and be in the high-pressure moments. That’s what it’s all about, you know. Obviously, I was disappointed to come so far and leave India feeling like I still had a job to do. But the boys picked up beautifully from where we left off and became deserving IPL champions,” Salt added.
Phil Salt was awarded the T20I batter of the Year for 2024 at the CEAT International Cricket Awards.
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