Lot of the pre-match chat was about taking it to them: Phil Salt

Delhi Capitals recorded a commanding seven-wicket win against Royal Challengers Bangalore at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in an evening encounter on Saturday, May 6, to move to ninth position in the points table. 

In pursuit of 182 runs, the home team were off to a flying start in the powerplay as Phil Salt smashed 28 runs off Mohammed Siraj's first two overs to set the tone for the Capitals. 

The right-handed batter scored 87 off 45 deliveries with eight boundaries and six maximums to help Delhi chase down the total in 16.4 overs. In the post-match press conference, the England batter shared insights on his knock and the mindset of the side heading into this high-voltage clash. 

"I am very satisfied with the knock. Obviously, there was a little bit of a needle. Their boys were up when we were in Bangalore for the last game, so a lot of the pre-match chat was about really taking it to them, which I felt that we did really well. There were a few words and a bit of needle, but most blokes were up for it, certainly myself."

"I feel like if you take on a side's best bowler a lot of the time and you win that particular battle, whether it's the first over or any over that he bowls, the message that it sends back into the dugout is one of calm.

"When that happens, and you do it successfully, you see guys come out the way Mitch did. Hit his second ball for six. You see Rilee come out and bat like he'd already faced 30 balls. A sort of a method behind it," he further added. 

The Capitals have endured the rough tournament and managed to win just their fourth game in 10 league matches and Salt stated the team had honest conversations within the group. 

"After a few games, it was a conscious review between everybody on what are we doing right, what we could improve on. The batting group throwing the first punch out was a major talking point. Our bowlers have been put in some tough situations, like against Gujarat in the last game. They have come out strongly," Salt said.

The 26-year-old also felt the need to prove himself against the best players in the world and in the best league to become a better player.

"It's the first time lot of people would have seen me bat. Probably a lot of Indian fans are watching me for the first time if they don't watch other competitions."

"My goal ever since the auction was to come here and win games and challenge myself against the best in the world. Realistically, we know this is the best domestic league in the world," he concluded. 

Delhi Capitals will now face Chennai Super Kings away from home on Wednesday, May 7, at the MA Chidambaram Stadium.