Phil Salt has returned to the UK for scans on the finger injury that has kept him out of the last three matches for Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) at IPL 2026. The update means that Jacob Bethell is set to extend his run of games at the top of the order.

RCB have not revealed the nature of Salt’s injury publicly, but ESPNcricinfo has learned that he damaged a finger on his left hand while diving to save a boundary at deep backward square leg in the sixth over of the second innings during their defeat at home to Delhi Capitals (DC) on April 18. He had started the season strongly, scoring 202 runs in six innings at a strike rate of 168.33.

ESPNcricinfo understands that Salt, who is centrally contracted by the ECB, has since returned home at the request of England’s management and has undergone scans on his finger. Both player and franchise remain hopeful that the finger will heal soon enough for Salt to return to India this month, with RCB aiming to defend the title that they won for the first time last season.

Salt’s absence has enabled Bethell, his international team-mate, to open the batting alongside Virat Kohli after starting the season on the bench. Bethell is yet to make a significant impact (he has scored 39 runs in three innings) but now looks set for further opportunities at the top of the order with Jordan Cox, another Englishman, also available as a spare batter.

RCB would be eligible to sign a replacement for Salt under IPL regulations in the event that the injury is deemed season-ending, but they are expected to give him every opportunity to recover.

The timing of Salt’s injury will be frustrating for him. He has previously spoken highly of RCB’s team environment under Mo Bobat (director of cricket), Andy Flower (head coach), and Dinesh Karthik (batting coach/mentor), and had rediscovered his best form at the IPL after a lean T20 World Cup with England.

RCB are in the middle of a six-day gap between games, following their defeat to Gujarat Titans (GT) in Ahmedabad last Thursday. Several players travelled to the Maldives after that loss for a mid-season break ahead of their next fixture against Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) on Thursday night.