Salt relishing opportunity in Barbados

PHIL Salt admits it would be “very special” to make his Twenty20 bow for England at the Kensington Oval after spending six years of his childhood in Barbados, writes David Charlesworth.

Salt was nine when his property developer father uprooted the family from Bodelwyddan in north Wales to the Caribbean island, where the now top-order batter’s “attention shifted” from football to cricket.

He witnessed England getting their hands on the 2010 World Twenty20 and, a dozen years on, Salt is poised to make his international debut in the shortest format against the West Indies.

Asked what it would mean to be in the XI at any point in the fivematch series, which starts today and concludes next weekend, Salt replied: “It will be very special. I watched a lot of cricket on this ground growing up. Every night of the week I had somewhere else to go play or train and the weekend was cricket again.

“Previously in the UK, my main focus had been on football and I did bits and pieces of cricket, having a bit of a knockabout because my brother played, but coming here my attention shifted.”

Among Salt’s contemporaries was Jofra Archer, who was catching up with England teammates at the Kensington Oval on Tuesday and doing light training drills after a second operation on a chronic elbow issue last month.

There is no timescale yet on Archer’s return – and he is yet to resume bowling – but Salt is pleased that his now-former Sussex team-mate is, for now, in tow with the 17-strong squad.

Salt said: “We have known each other since we were about 11. He used to do all sorts. The only time he bowled seamers at that point was when touring teams came over and he used to have them jumping all over the place.

“I used to sit back on the 30 yards circle – that was when we were a bit older though. He used to bowl leggies, keep. It is good to have him back now.”

Salt, who first represented his country in three ODIs against Pakistan when a replacement squad was named, knows he must grasp his chance.

He added: “The opportunities you get are going to be limited, so you have to really take them as soon as you can.”