3 Jos Buttler milestones Shubman Gill can break in ODIs
Touted as a generational talent by several cricketing pundits and aficionados, Shubman Gill has established himself as one of the finest young talents on the international level. He has been off the boil in the last few months with a string of low scores.
However, his talent cannot be denied and the Indian fans will be hoping that he regains his lost touch in the upcoming home World Cup slated to start from October 5.
Gill was at his imperious best during the bilateral series against New Zealand and Sri Lanka earlier this year. He smashed a double century against the likes of Lockie Ferguson while the Sri Lankan bowlers were at the receiving end of another scathing attack from the enigmatic young batter.
Gill struggled during the recently concluded West Indies tour and had a tough time against a star-studded Pakistan bowling attack. However, he still boasts of a sensational ODI record which can only improve as he gets more exposure against top-class bowlers.
Meanwhile, Jos Buttler is also considered one of the finest white ball batters going around. His ability to decimate any bowling attack on his day makes him an indispensable part of the English ODI and T20 outfit.
The English white ball skipper has dominated the shorter versions of the game and Gill will definitely look to take a leaf out of his book on how he constructs his innings, especially in the middle overs and then go hammers and tongs towards the death.
His ability to mould his game to different situations makes him a potent threat against any opposition. Over the years, Buttler has notched up quite a few milestones and remains the fastest ODI centurion for England.
As both Gill and Buttler celebrate their birthdays on September 8 (Friday) let us have a look at three Jos Buttler milestones in ODIs which Shubman Gill can break in future:
# 1 Number of sixes in an ODI inning
Both Gill and Buttler are destructive players, especially during the final phase of an ODI innings. While Buttler has been a six-hitting machine when it comes to the white ball format, Gill prefers to time the ball and play along the ground before tearing the bowling apart during the death overs.
Buttler can keep clearing the boundary at any phase of the game. He has established himself in the role of a middle-order batter or a finisher in this format which gives him a leeway to go on a rampage from the outset.
Coming into bat in the 30th over during an ODI against the Netherlands last year, Buttler smashed 14 sixes en route to a belligerent 162 off a mere 70 deliveries.
While Buttler is in a league of his own when it comes to six-hitting ability, Gill has got the game for big knocks in ODIs.
Gill smashed nine sixes during his double century against New Zealand earlier in the year. Unlike Buttler, Gill is an opener in this format which gives him the opportunity to break this Buttler milestone of hitting more sixes in an ODI innings.
# 2 Overall strike rate
Jos Buttler has a far superior strike rate in the fifty-over format compared to Shubman Gill. However, the young turk from India is just in the initial stages of his international career.
If he can maintain his fitness and work on a few technical deficiencies, Gill has all the attributes of becoming an all-time great.
With modern-day cricket posing stern challenges, we might see a whole change in the dimension of ODI cricket in the next 10 years.
In 29 ODI's, Gill has a strike rate of 102.64 which comes nowhere close to Buttler's strike rate (117.97) in this format. However, with several years of cricket ahead of him, Gill will get an opportunity to set this milestone straight.
# 3 Aggregate number of sixes in ODI career
Buttler's six-hitting prowess against top-quality bowlers has made him one of the most destructive white ball players.
In his 165 ODI career so far, Buttler has smashed 158 sixes and could become one of those very few players to hit 200 sixes in ODIs once he hangs his boots.
Meanwhile, Shubman Gill has emerged as India's preferred opener in the company of Rohit Sharma for the last year and a half. His ODI career so far has been a tale of two halves.
While he dominated the Sri Lankan and the New Zealand bowling attack during the home series earlier this year, Gill has struggled against high-quality seam and swing bowling.
Despite his struggles off late, Gill still has a sensational record in his limited ODI career. He has smashed 29 sixes in as many matches and could break Buttler's milestone by the end of his career.