Phil Salt leaves RCB camp to undergo scans on injured finger

Phil Salt has left the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) camp and flown back to the UK for scans on his injured finger on his left hand. Salt suffered the injury while fielding at deep backward square leg in the sixth over of Delhi Capitals' innings during match No. 26 at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium.

Salt is a big miss for RCB as the right-handed opener was off to a blistering start to the season, aggregating 202 runs across six innings at an impressive strike rate of 168.33.

As per a report by ESPNcricinfo, Salt has returned to the UK to spend time with his family until his finger heals completely and has already undergone scans. He is likely to return and link up with his RCB teammates as soon as he regains match fitness.

Salt's absence has given an eagerly anticipated opportunity to compatriot Jacob Bethell to make his mark in the ongoing IPL season. There was no room for Bethell in RCB's playing XI previously, as Salt, Tim David and Romario Shepherd were performing in tandem.

The southpaw has managed 39 runs in three games for RCB this IPL season at a strike rate of 150.00. He has a best of 20, which came against Delhi Capitals (DC) at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, in pursuit of 76.

RCB's title defence on track

RCB have secured 12 points after nine games this season with six wins and three losses. They are second on the points table, with just a point behind Punjab Kings (PBKS). PBKS were the runners-up last season, and after going undefeated in the first seven games, have suddenly lost two on the bounce.

RCB lost their previous fixture to Gujarat Titans (GT) by four wickets at the Narendra Modi Stadium. They will now shift base from the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru to the Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh International Stadium in Chhattisgarh. Their next clash is against Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) in Chhattisgarh on May 7.