'If he takes his ODI position for granted...' - Salman Butt fires Shubman Gill a massive 'Yashasvi Jaiswal' warning

Former Pakistan captain Salman Butt has made a huge statement on Shubman Gill's future. Butt believes that if Shubman Gill will take his position for granted, India might look up to Yashasvi Jaiswal as his possible replacement in ODIs.

Shubman Gill was dismissed for 16 off 35 balls during the first ODI against Sri Lanka. The 24-year-old never looked comfortable at the crease and struggled for timing on a slow and turning pitch.

His weakness on slow wickets was again exposed as Gill tried his best to break the shackles but was dismissed cheaply by the left-arm spinner Dunith Wellalage. This was another such innings where he got a start but was dismissed while trying to go for a boundary.

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Salman Butt's huge statement on Shubman Gill and Yashasvi Jaiswal

While speaking in a video uploaded on his YouTube channel, Salman Butt reckoned that Gill has been consistent in the past 1.5 years and is among the world's top batsmen currently. But the former Pakistan opener also added that Gill has been dismissed between the twenties and thirties in the past few months and termed this as his vulnerable period.

"Shubman Gill has performed a lot in the last 1-1.5 years. He is among the world's top batsmen and is very consistent. But if you see his batting since the 2023 ODI World Cup in India, he has given away a lot of starts," Butt stated.

"He has scored 20-25 and has got out. He has played a lot in the air and has been caught out inside the circle. He has been caught at point on the uppish drives as well. He loses concentration quickly. It seems like between the 20-30 runs, it is his vulnerable period.," he added.

"If Gill takes his position for granted..." - Salman Butt on Shubman Gill's future

Butt mentioned that it is not a great sign for such a player and if he doesn't improve, Jaiswal is waiting in line to replace him.

"He (Gill) has been dismissed a lot during this period. This is not a great sign for such an established player that he gets out in this way. So there is competition as (Yashasvi) Jaiswal) is giving good performances. If Gill takes his position for granted, then he will be challenged," Butt reckoned.

Shubman Gill was appointed India's vice-captain for both the T20I and ODI series in Sri Lanka. This shows the selectors' faith in the youngster. Chief selector Ajit Agarkar has already stated that they see Gill as a future captain of India if he keeps on performing with the bat.

Shubman Gill has an excellent record in ODI cricket. He has scored 2287 runs in 45 matches at an average of 60.18 and a strike rate of 102.55. He has smashed 6 hundreds and 13 fifties in the format. Meanwhile, Jaiswal is yet to make his ODI debut despite impressing in Tests and T20I cricket. He is seen as a hard hitter and can be a useful pick in ODIs.