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Strikers add Salt to spice up their top order

Sussex batsman joins coach Jason Gillespie in signing with the Adelaide Strikers for the upcoming BBL season

Alex Malcolm
Alex Malcolm
10-Sep-2019
Phil Salt bats  •  Getty Images

Phil Salt bats  •  Getty Images

Adelaide Strikers have signed Sussex opener Phil Salt for the upcoming BBL season.
Salt, 23, joins Rashid Khan as the Strikers' overseas players after South African Colin Ingram left the team at the end of last season.
The right-handed opener has had an outstanding T20 Blast season for Sussex under the guidance of Jason Gillespie, the coach at Sussex and Strikers. He has scored 406 runs in 13 innings, including four half-centuries, at a phenomenal strike rate of 161.11.
Salt has been playing alongside Strikers keeper Alex Carey at Sussex this year and has also played with Rashid.
The Strikers' top-order batting struggled big time last season after being the cornerstone of their title win in BBL 07, and Gillespie was delighted to add a dynamic right-hander to compliment the bevy of left-handers in the top order. "We are incredibly excited to have signed Phil who has showed real signs of promise and has performed well for the Sharks in the Blast," Gillespie said.
"He's beyond excited to get started, obviously we have Carey over here in England and Phil has been chatting to him non-stop about how it's going to work, when he can come out to Adelaide and meet everyone and get stuck in."
Salt has experience playing premier cricket in Adelaide with Adelaide University in 2017-18. He played nine matches across the summer while doing a stint at the Darren Lehmann Academy.
"I had a stint in Adelaide playing for Adelaide University and loved it, I made some really good friends who I'm looking forward to seeing again," he said. "I love working with Dizz (Gillespie), Rash and Alex, it's so key when you're trying to build a great environment to have guys who you know are going to put 100% in at all times and give everything they've got to the cause.
"I've worked really well with Dizz over the course of my career so far and hope that we can be even more successful here at the Strikers."
The Strikers have also signed South Australia wicketkeeper Harry Nielsen to the roster. Nielsen played last season in Carey's absence and will likely be required again when the Australia ODI side tours India for a week in January midway through the BBL.