Legendary West Indies batter Brian Lara has expressed admiration for India's opener Shubman Gill, labelling him as the most talented batter in the current generation. Gill is included in the Indian squad slated to embark on a month-long tour to South Africa.
Gill has secured a spot in both the T20I and Test squads for the upcoming South Africa tour. Despite holding the top rank in the world for ODIs, the right-handed batter has been rested from the ODI series.
In an interview with Anandabazar Patrika, Lara said that Gill has the potential to surpass his record for the highest individual score in Test cricket. Gill, who has accumulated 966 runs in 18 Test matches for India, boasts an average of 32.20 and has secured two centuries.
"Shubman Gill can break both my records. Gill is the most talented batter in this new generation. He will rule cricket in the coming years. I believe he will go on to break many big records. He (Gill) can do it (break my records). If Gill plays County cricket then he can break my 501*. In Test cricket, he can surely go past 400," said Lara.
The 54-year-old Lara expressed confidence in Gill's ability to clinch numerous ICC tournaments in the future. He emphasised that Gill will continue to amass significant runs for his country. In ODIs, Gill has accumulated 2271 runs in 44 matches, boasting an impressive average of 61.38 and a striking rate of 103.46. In T20Is, he has scored 304 runs in 11 matches, with an average of 30.40 and a strike rate of 146.86.
"Shubman will score big, mark my words. Gill didn't score a century (in the World Cup) but look at the knocks he has already played. He has centuries in all formats, has smashed a double hundred in ODIs and has also played many match-winnings in the IPL. I'm sure he will win many ICC tournaments in the future," Lara added.
In the first match of the three-game T20I series, India will take on South Africa in an all-format series starting on December 10 at the Kingsmead Stadium in Durban.
(Powered by AI, Inputs by India Today)
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