Ravichandran Ashwin’s Deep-Dive Unravels Brilliance of Phil Salt’s IPL-Winning Catch

Ravichandran Ashwin praised RCB star Phil Salt's incredible, game-changing stunning catch against PBKS, in the 2025 IPL final.

Ravichandran Ashwin’s Deep-Dive Unravels Brilliance of Phil Salt’s IPL-Winning Catch

R Ashwin praised RCB star Phil Salt for taking a stunning catch in the 2025 IPL final against PBKS. (via YouTube)

Former Indian cricketer and Chennai Super Kings spinner Ravichandran Ashwin discussed RCB star Phil Salt’s gravity-defying catch that changed the course of the 2025 IPL final, against PBKS. Ashwin delved deeply into how brilliant Salt’s efforts were, while fielding against Punjab Kings. 

June 3, 2025 turned out to be a memorable day for Royal Challengers Bengaluru and its fans, as the franchise ended its 18-year wait for an IPL title. Batting first at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, the Rajat Patidar-led side managed to post a competitive target of 191 runs against PBKS. Virat Kohli, Mayank Agarwal, Patidar, Liam Livingstone and Jitesh Sharma all contributed with crucial knocks. 

Shreyas Iyer-led Punjab Kings, despite having suffered a humiliating defeat in the first qualifier against the same opponents, looked in high spirits after having made their way into the final with an impressive win over Mumbai Indians in the eliminator. However, in spite of a pretty decent 43-run opening stand between Priyansh Arya and Prabhsimran Singh, PBKS faltered, and at the end, fell short by a margin of just six runs.

Many believe that opener Priyansh Arya’s wicket in the final over of the powerplay, is what turned the tide in favor of RCB. Englishman Phil Salt produced a moment of magic to dismiss Arya, for just 24 runs. The hard-hitting PBKS opener misjudged a short of the length delivery from Josh Hazlewood, as he caressed his pull shot to send the ball travelling in the air towards the square-leg boundary.

Phil Salt, fielding there, did the unthinkable by jumping in the air to complete the brilliant catch. His fielding effort has drawn attention since then, with many including former Indian Test star and Chennai Super Kings bowler R. Ashwin coming out in praise of the 28-year-old Englishman. Speaking on his YouTube channel, Ashwin also explained how difficult the catch was, due to the dimensions of the Ahmedabad ground.

Ashwin noted that Salt had to cover a lot of ground by running towards his right to take the catch. He also added that the RCB star was quick to realize that he was losing his momentum, which led him to make a split-second decision to hurl the ball in the air and step over the boundary line. Salt then jumped back in and completed the catch with composure and precision, to give his team a much-needed breakthrough.

Phil Salt’s catch even reminded fans of Suryakumar Yadav’s stunning catch in the last over of the 2024 T20 World Cup final against South Africa, to dismiss David Miller. It however, was not enough for Salt to win the 2025 IPL Catch of the Season award, which instead went to Sunrisers Hyderabad all-rounder Kamindu Mendis. 

Phil Salt to miss West Indies T20Is for paternity break, after coming off a historic 2025 IPL triumph 

Straight after guiding RCB to its maiden IPL triumph, Phil Salt returned back to England to celebrate the birth of his child. The 28-year-old is now set to miss out on the entirety of the Three Lions’ ongoing T20I series against West Indies, due to paternity leave. 

Phil Salt miss West Indies T20Is
Phil Salt is expected to miss out on England’s T20I series against West Indies, for the birth of his child. (via Cricfit)

Salt flew back-and-forth from India to England and then back to India, over the past two weeks. He first travelled to the UK after RCB’s qualifier win to be with his partner for the birth of their child. He then returned back to India to play the final on June 3, leading RCB to the trophy. The ECB has now granted Salt the permission to withdraw from the T20I squad, to spend time with his family.

Salt’s withdrawal from the England T20I squad leaves space for a new batter, in the XI. Wicket-keeper batter Jamie Smith opened in the first T20I, and impressed with a quick-fire knock of 38 runs off just 20 balls, hitting four boundaries and two sixes.