With IPL 2026 set to start from March 28, one question in everyone’s mind, especially among RCB fans, is who will open the batting with Virat Kohli. Will it be Phil Salt or Jacob Bethell?
Phil Salt, the England opening batter, did not have the best T20 World Cup 2026. He scored 130 runs in eight matches at an average of 16.25 and a strike rate of 158.53. He scored only one half century, which came against Sri Lanka in the Super 8 stage and helped England win the match.
Apart from that, he could not perform well in the tournament, which led to top order collapses for England in several matches, especially as Jos Buttler was also not in good form. In eight innings, Salt had four single digit scores and one duck. Because he has set very high standards for himself as a batter, not many expected him to have a tournament like this.
In T20 internationals, Salt had an impressive 2025, scoring 434 runs in 12 innings at an average of 43.4. However, his form has dipped this year, as he has managed 177 runs in 10 innings at an average of 17.7. His lack of runs is also a concerning sign for Royal Challengers Bengaluru ahead of the IPL 2026 season.
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Jacob Bethell, a young batting sensation in international cricket, made a strong impact in the T20 World Cup 2026. Playing his first T20 World Cup, the 22 year old scored 280 runs in eight innings at an average of 35.00 and a strike rate of 152.17, including one century and one half century.
His half century came against Nepal, where he scored 55 runs. It was an important innings as England eventually won the match by a very close margin of runs. His century came in the big semi final against host India.
England were chasing a huge target of 254 runs, and Bethell came in at No.4 when the team was 38/2. From there, he played a brilliant knock of 105 off 48 balls, hitting eight fours and seven sixes with a strike rate of 218.75. Even though England lost the match, Bethell won the hearts of many fans. Apart from him, the next highest score in the innings was only 35, and because of his knock England lost by just seven runs.
With this innings, Bethell has now scored a century in all three formats of international cricket.
We all saw that Phil Salt had a very good IPL 2025, where he scored 403 runs in 13 matches and formed a strong opening partnership with Kohli. However, his form has dipped recently, which was visible in the T20 World Cup 2026. Out of the eight matches he played in the tournament, five were in India, where he will also play for RCB, but he managed to score only 66 runs in five innings. This is a worrying sign for the team.
On the other hand, Jacob Bethell is in very good form and may have tempted the management to consider him in the playing XI. Although he mostly batted at No.3 and No.4 in the World Cup, he is a flexible batter and can also open the innings. In the two matches he played in IPL 2025, he scored 67 runs at an average of 33.50, and both innings came as an opener.
The team also have Jitesh Sharma in the squad, who is their main wicketkeeper. Because of this, the team can still manage even if Salt is left out.
So, it will be interesting to see who opens the innings with Kohli for the defending champions in IPL 2026.
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