England cricket star Phil Salt reaps rewards of extreme gym routine and eating 3,500 calories a day
Phil Salt has been reaping the rewards of an extreme gym routine as he bulks up in an effort to bring England World Cup glory.
With this record-breaking 119 against the West Indies on Tuesday, Salt became the first Englishman to ever score consecutive T20I hundreds, as he struck ten sixes to back up the century he made in Grenada three days previously.
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The explosive right-hander has been in the gym and following a diet of 3,500 calories a day in an attempt to add extra strength to his game.
“To get through 3,500 calories a day has been a bit of a job,” Salt said with a smile. “My missus has been raging because the shopping bill has gone through the roof.
“I’ve been working in the gym the last few months, trying to put a couple of kilos on. A bit of that is fat as well, but you can’t win them all."
The catalyst for the change was England’s upcoming T20 World Cup campaign, a tournament he has put himself in pole position for after his superb performances in the Caribbean this past month.
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“I wanted to make myself stronger, bigger, quicker, basically. Half of it is to ripple out at the beach and half of it is performance related.
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“You watch someone like Dre Russ, see the specimen that he is and while I am never going to look like him, I can definitely make an improvement in that area. It’s all about marginal gains, I suppose. Pound for pound, I think I might have him, but don’t tell him I said that.”
Head coach Matthew Mott confirmed to the UK press in the Caribbean that Salt is in line to open with Buttler at the upcoming World Cup, saying that Salt has put forward an 'undeniable case'.
“I’m sure you guys will speculate a lot over the next few months about what the team might look like, but I think it’s set up well.”
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The two centuries that Salt has scored in the past five days were his first ever in T20 cricket, having previously made 32 fifties, but never once reaching three figures.
“We had a chat a few days ago in Grenada about being that guy to walk off after winning the game for England, and there’s not a more special feeling than that in cricket. It’s not about personal accolades, it’s about getting the boys over the line.”
The series is tied at two-all with the decider starting at 8pm on Thursday, where every ball will be broadcast live on talkSPORT2.
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