Shubman Gill recently won an ICC Champions Trophy title with the Indian Team in Dubai while playing as Rohit Sharma’s deputy. He is the number one batter in ODIs, has a double hundred to his name in the format and captains his IPL franchise, Gujarat Titans. At 26, he perhaps has achieved what most batters haven’t in their entire careers, and his former GT teammate Kane Williamson feels Gill’s master cricketing brain is a testament to his greatness.

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Gill is the most likely contender for India’s captaincy once Rohit retires, and speaking of the same, Williamson did all but heaped praises on the batting star. As Gill prepares to lead GT in IPL 2025, with the side’s tournament opener scheduled against Punjab Kings on Tuesday (Mar 25), he aims to bring the trophy home.

Williamson said there is plenty to like about Gill; he always puts his team ahead of his interest and knows what he wants as a batter and captain.

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Williamson, who led New Zealand to great heights as an all-format captain, knows what it takes to be a leader, adding Gill owns all the qualities required to be an impactful skipper.

"He's (Gill) a very well put together human. 

"A great cricketing brain and cares about his teammates. He's very sure on how he wants to go about his business, which I think it's a really strong leadership quality and quite infectious, so there's no surprises really that he's touted for leadership for some of the Indian sides in the near future,” Kane said in a chat with ESPNcricinfo.

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What impressed him the most about Gill was his willingness to learn and get better at things. The veteran Kiwi batter said Gill is capable of scaling unbelievable heights, and how he adjusts his game format-wise, he is bound to achieve greatness in this game. 

"He's got some really clear thoughts about how he wants to captain. And you know, that's important. You have some thoughts, and you do it with conviction, and you learn, and you try and get better - and he's got all of that. He's got that capability, and you see it in the way he plays, the way you can adjust from format to format, from Test cricket to T20 cricket. He's done it all at the highest level. So yeah, I think he's a special player and going to be a fine leader as well,” Kane continued. 

When he speaks, everyone listens

Kane added that Gill knows what he is talking about, and because he’s clear in his thoughts, everyone listens when he speaks.

"He's clear, concise, and to the point, so when it was time to speak, he would stand up, and when he spoke, people listened. And that's a really strong quality to have - to know when to say something and when not to. There's messages within both those sort of situations,” Williamson added.

(With inputs from agencies)