"He's so technically sound, doesn't seem like he will ever make a mistake" - Harbhajan Singh’s big praise for GT batter ahead of IPL 2025
Former India off spinner Harbhajan Singh has expressed confidence that Gujarat Titans (GT) captain Shubman Gill will have an impressive IPL 2025 season with the bat. Describing the 25-year-old as an unbelievable player, he predicted that the right-handed batter would finish among the top three run-getters of IPL 2025.
Gill was named captain of Gujarat Titans last season after Hardik Pandya was traded to Mumbai Indians (MI). GT were disappointing in IPL 2024. They finished in eighth position, winning only five of their seven matches. As for Gill, he had a mixed time of it, scoring 426 runs in 12 matches at an average of 38.72 and a strike rate of 147.40, with one hundred and two half-centuries to his name.
During an interaction on ESPNcricinfo, Harbhajan threw his weight behind Gill and predicted a big season for him with the bat. Praising the opener, he said:
"Unbelievable player. I think he's going to have a great season. The position at which he bats, he carries the team along. And it's not like he bats slowly. He plays long innings at a strike rate of 140-150. You will always see him among the top five batters of the season. He's so technically sound, it doesn't seem like he will ever make a mistake.
"Yes, he didn't quite get a lot of runs last season, but he was unbelievable the year before that. He's a clean hitter and doesn't need to play reverse sweeps or switch hits. His game in front of the wicket is so strong. We will probably see the best of Shubman Gill this season with the bat. Gill will be in the top three run-scorers for sure," the 44-year-old went on to add.
Gill-led Gujarat Titans will open their IPL 2025 campaign with a match against Punjab Kings (PBKS) at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on March 25.
Shubman Gill's record in the IPL
Gill made his IPL debut for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the 2018 season. He represented the franchise until 2021. In four seasons for the Kolkata franchise, the elegant batter scored 1,417 runs in 58 matches at an average of 31.48 and a strike rate of 123, with 10 half-centuries.
Looking at his record for Gujarat Titans, he is the leading run-getter for the franchise, with 1,799 runs in 45 matches at an average of 44.97 and a strike rate of 147.70, with four hundreds and 10 half-centuries. Overall, Gill has played 103 IPL matches and has scored 3,216 runs at an average of 37.83 and a strike rate of 135.69.