"Won't lose his form after sitting out for a few day" - Salman Butt on Shubman Gill's potential return in IND vs PAK match of 2023 World Cup

Team India opener Shubman Gill missed the side's first two matches of the ongoing 2023 World Cup due to dengue. However, the youngster could make his comeback in the upcoming fixture against Pakistan.

Former Pakistan captain Salman Butt believes that Gill is unlikely to lose his impressive form after being on the sidelines for a few days. He mentioned that while there could be some weakness after dengue, the batter can overcome that.

"A player won't lose his form after sitting out for a few days. It won't make a big difference. Even if there was some weakness, he would have worked on it during practice." Butt said (20:55) in his latest YouTube video.

He further stated that Gill's return will bolster India's batting lineup, pointing out how the player has been in scintillating form in the recent past. Butt added (8:40):

"If Gill returns, it will be a massive advantage for Team India. He has been a key member of that side in the last 18 months or so. He has been an important player who has scored more runs than anybody else. He has scored effective and match-winning runs."

India and Pakistan will battle it out against each other at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Saturday, October 13. Gill has reached Ahmedabad and was also recently seen batting in the nets.

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"Has not even played 25 percent of the cricket that Jasprit Bumrah has" - Salman Butt on Shaheen Afridi

During the video, Salman Butt also spoke about how it was not fair to compare Pakistan's pace spearhead Shaheen Afridi with Indian speedster Jasprit Bumrah.

He noted that Bumrah is a seasoned campaigner who has proved his mettle across formats. The 39-year-old urged fans to wait till Shaheen plays a few more matches before drawing comparisons between the two.

Butt added (21:22):

"Why do people draw comparisons between Shaheen Afridi and Jasprit Bumrah? Shaheen has not even played 25 percent of the cricket that Bumrah has. Bumrah is a very experienced player and has played Test cricket across the world. He has given brilliant performances in all three formats, doing well with the new ball as well as the old ball. How can you compare Shaheen to a senior bowler? Shaheen is a wonderful talent, but at least let me play half the number of matches that Bumrah has."

Shaheen hasn't been at his best so far in the 2023 World Cup. The lanky pacer has picked up just two wickets from as many games. Bumrah, on the other hand, has six scalps from two outings.