England make Phil Salt available for Blast quarter-final

The opener wasn't involved in England's series-opening defeat by India on Thursday night and has subsequently been released to join his Lancashire teammates

Phil Salt has been made available by England to play for Lancashire in their T20 Blast quarter-final on Friday evening.

The opener wasn't involved in England's series-opening defeat by India on Thursday night and has subsequently been released to join his depleted county at Emirates Old Trafford, where they face Essex.

Lancashire, who earned a home quarter-final by finishing second in the North Group, had five players – Salt, Jos Buttler, Liam Livingstone, Matt Parkinson and Richard Gleeson – called up for the three-match T20I series, which clashes with Blast quarter-final week. Salt is the only one of the quintet to have been given leave. Buttler, Livingstone and Parkinson all played on Thursday evening, while Gleeson may well be given an opportunity on Saturday in the second T20I.

Salt smashed 317 runs in the group stage for Lancashire in 11 matches, missing three matches during England's ODI tour of the Netherlands, where he made an enormous impression with a maiden international hundred.

David Willey was given similar dispensation to feature for Yorkshire on Wednesday night against Surrey, who were missing several key players.

Chris Jordan, Dawid Malan, Harry Brook, Jonny Bairstow, Sam Curran, Chris Jordan, Jason Roy and Reece Topley were all missing from the two sides, while Joe Root and Jonny Bairstow were rested.

^{Salt made his first international hundred against the Netherlands (Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)}

Derbyshire head of cricket Mickey Arthur criticised the schedule, calling for quarter-final week to be protected.

"One hundred per cent Blast knockout matches should be ring-fenced," he said. "Surrey-Yorkshire and no international cricketers because there is an England series on at the same time – for me that is unacceptable.

"It is a showpiece for our players and domestic cricketers of the summer. Take The Hundred out of it. This is the showpiece for the counties and to be given so much disrespect for me is not great and I am quite strong on that."

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