"He is a very, very committed and passionate guy" - KKR batter Phil Salt hails Gautam Gambhir ahead of IPL 2024

Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) batter Phil Salt labeled team mentor Gautam Gambir as incredibly committed and passionate ahead of the 2024 IPL season.

After spending the last two seasons with the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) as their mentor, Gambhir returned to KKR during the off-season. He led the franchise to their only two titles in 2012 and 2014.

Meanwhile, Salt came in as a replacement for Jason Roy, who opted out of IPL 2024 due to personal reasons.

Speaking to India Today, Salt hailed Gambhir and the KKR setup ahead of the new season.

"KKR is a brilliant franchise. Gautam Gambhir and Chandrakant Pandit have made it very clear about how we play, how we do everything. [Gambhir] He is very clear. He is a very, very committed and passionate guy. We had fun last night with the teammates as well," said Salt.

Salt played his maiden IPL season with the Delhi Capitals last year, scoring 218 runs at an average of over 27 and a strike rate of 163.91 in nine games. The 27-year-old has been in sensational form in T20Is over the past few months, scoring two centuries in his last three outings for England.

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"SKY (Suryakumar Yadav) is one of the toughest opponents to face" - Phil Salt

Phil Salt called the Mumbai Indians' Suryakumar Yadav the toughest opponent to play against in the IPL.

Apart from being the world's No. 1 ranked T20I batter, Surya also boasts an impressive IPL record. He averages over 32 at a strike rate of 143.32 in 139 games.

Salt also named his newest teammates, Sunil Narine and Varun Chakaravarthy, as the most difficult to face with the ball.

"SKY (Suryakumar Yadav) is one of the toughest opponents to face, and the toughest bowlers are Sunil Narine and Varun Chakaravarthy. I have faced them in our practice match. They have a lot of tricks," said Salt.

Narine and Chakaravarthy were two of the shining lights in a dim season for KKR last year, picking up a combined 31 wickets in 14 games. The side finished seventh and missed the playoffs for a second consecutive season, winning six out of 14 matches.

Salt commented on KKR owner Shahrukh Khan by saying:

"I've heard of Shahrukh Khan before. He is a big star and I have heard of him. I have gone through OTT platforms for his movies."

KKR will begin their IPL 2024 campaign at home against the SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) on March 23.