Bridgetown (Barbados), Jun 4 (PTI) It was a homecoming of sorts for England opener Phil Salt when he touched base here for the T20 World Cup.

Salt lived in Barbados for five years after moving to the island as a 10-year-old and was there in the stands when England won the 2010 T20 World Cup.

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He eventually moved back to England and as an emerging player was eligible to play for the West Indies as well.

"Everything about the place suits me. Pretty laid back, a lot of cricket, a lot of sport and I've still got a lot of friends on the island," Salt was quoted as saying by the ICC's official website for the World Cup.

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He is back as one among England's defending champion team which will open its campaign against Scotland later on Wednesday. The right-hander made his T20 International debut in January 2022, six months after padding up for the first time in ODIs.

"I watched England here, watched them win it. I think every kid in the crowd would have gone, that's going to be me one day, or I'd like that to be me one day, but you never believe it," he said.

"So now to be here in an England shirt, with the opportunity to do something special in the next month is incredible really. I got a touch of the trophy that day.

"That's the thing that always sticks with me when I think about that day," he added.

The 27-year-old grew up idolising the likes of Craig Kieswetter and Chris Gayle.

"When I was a kid, anybody who hit the ball hard or kept, I'd watch them on YouTube and just try and try and emulate them," he said.

Now, all he wants is to be a match-winner for England as many times as he can.

"I want to be the person winning more games for England," he said.

"There's a bit of a way to go, but that's absolutely the goal. We're here to win," he added.

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