ENG vs IND 2025: 'I always thought captaincy suits Shubman Gill' - Kane Williamson

Former New Zealand captain Kane Williamson has revealed that he noticed the captaincy potential in Shubman Gill quite early in his career and mentioned that the young skipper has wisdom beyond his years. Gill recently took charge of the Test team following the retirement of Rohit Sharma from the longest format in May.

Williamson shared the Gujarat Titans (GT) dressing room with Gill in the 2023 and 2024 editions of the Indian Premier League (IPL). The Punjab batter has been the captain of the Titans since 2024. Under his captaincy, Gujarat reached the qualifiers this year.

“He's responded beautifully, hasn't he? I always thought captaincy sits well with Shubman. I know that happening in a franchise space is slightly different; it's a shorter sort of project versus captaining your country, which is a lot more consuming. Watching Shubman operate and he's wise beyond his years, and that responsibility is naturally something that he would look to take on,” Williamson told Times of India.

Williamson hailed Gil as a world-class batter and he stated that the experience he is getting during the ongoing Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy will stand him in good stead for the future.

“So hearing him get that opportunity was no surprise to me but the quality of the player is something that goes without saying. He's absolutely world-class To see him come over here and conditions that can be challenging with the Dukes from time to time, and dominate like he has, it's been amazing. There are going to be really valuable lessons for him and we're looking towards the leader that he will become but it's still early days,” he added.

Shubman hasn't had the best of starts as a Test captain as India are trailing the five-match series against England 1-2. However, the Firozpur-born has done magnificently as a batter, having amassed 607 runs from six innings at an average of 101.17. He is the leading run-getter in the series by a distance.