Dinesh Karthik Phil Salt for RCB. Image Credits: AFP
Royal Challengers Bengaluru straightaway romped through Sunrisers Hyderabad in their inaugural clash on March 28 at the Chinnasamy Stadium. Excelling in all of batting, bowling, and fielding, RCB dominated the ground as the team’s batting coach and mentor, Dinesh Karthik, praised the efforts online.
However, Phil Salt, RCB’s opener and the packer of a spectacular ABD-esque catch in the match, trolled Dinesh Karthik online for an unintended mistake.
Phil Salt, who let down with the bat in the evening, was a shining prospect on the field, though. He took two superfluous catches to end Heinrich Klaasen and Ishan Kishan’s stints for the night while also packing Travis Head early in SRH’s innings.
Karthik, the mentor and coach of the team, has always been vocal about his team’s prospects, especially after the IPL title win in the previous season.
Dinesh Karthik Praises RCB’s Efforts Online
Praising the team’s efforts with the bat and the ball, where Virat Kohli top scored with a 38-ball 69, and Jacob Duffy stunned with a miraculous 3-wicket haul alongside Romario Shepherd, Karthik posted an appraisal post on his Instagram handle.
Karthik’s official Instagram handle saw him share a series of pictures that featured Virat Kohli and Devdutt Padikkal, who partnered for 101 runs in 45 balls. It saw Jacob Duffy and Rajat Patidar, too, where the letter played a late blitz of 31 off 12.
The series of six photos, however, missed the ‘Superman’-like catch of Phil Salt that the whole internet was talking about. The effort that was class apart had Salt grab a gravity-defying catch near the boundary lines to stop Ishan Kishan’s mayhem, who had to return for a 38-ball 80.
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Why Phil Salt Insulted Dinesh Karthik Online?
Complaining about his absence, Salt openly slammed Karthik on his social media post with a comment that is now going viral.
Salt wrote under Karthik’s post, “Nothing for the catch mastermind? Shame.” The comment immediately went viral as fans tuned into the sarcastic and hilarious writing.
While Tim David, who saw the end of the chase for RCB with an unbeaten 16 runs, also commented “mastermind,” Karthik’s praise was hilariously shunned by Phil Salt’s sarcasm.
While it might appear like an online dig, Salt was actually poking fun at the ‘mastermind’ Dinesh Karthik for missing out on his brilliant catch-taking frame that is now doing the rounds on the internet.
How RCB Dominated At Chinnaswamy For IPL 2026 Opener
While being dominant from the very start and winning the toss, RCB chose to bowl at Chinnaswamy. Hyderabad started off on a shaky note as Jacob Duffy struck early with Abhishek Sharma's wicket.
Travis Head, the other opener for SRH, also disappointed as he had to walk back after Duffy sent him back for just 11 runs. After 4.2 overs, the Kavya Maran-co-owned team seemed shaky at 29-3 before Ishan Kishan stepped in.
Kishan held the mast of the team to pair with Heinrich Klaasen for a 53-ball 97. That partnership helped SRH bear the initial blows as they posted a total of 201 runs on the board at the end of 20 overs on a batting-friendly Chinnaswamy pitch.
Bengaluru's Rocky Start Steered By Devdutt Padikkal and Virat Kohli
RCB's start with the bat was not smooth either. In the second over, Bangalore lost Phil Salt, but Devdutt Padikkal, who came in as the impact player, changed the whole momentum. Padikkal scored a 26-ball 61 in a whirlwind blitz to stun SRH bowlers.
Virat Kohli partnered with him steadily from the other end and, with Padikkal's dismissal in the 9th over, Rajat Patidar, the skipper, came in to take the game close to the finish.
Nevertheless, Virat Kohli and Tim David saw the chase through with 4.2 overs remaining, as they won the game by a margin of 6 wickets allowing Dinesh Karthik, the batting coach, to be proud of the performance.
Also Read- Watch- Virat Kohli Goes Wild After Travis Head's Wicket, Closes In On His Face
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