New Delhi [India], July 19 (ANI): Team India may have narrowly lost the third Test at Lord's, but the mood in the camp remains optimistic as the players gear up for the fourth match in Manchester on July 23. One name that continues to dominate conversations both for his leadership and batting is Shubman Gill. The young captain has shown promise, former cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar believes Gill is capable of bouncing back with a strong performance.

Manjrekar addressed Gill's lean outing at Lord's, where the right-hander managed just 16 and 6 in the two innings. Gill arrived at Lord's with three centuries, turned one of them into his career best 269.

'His role is important, but India will also reflect on the fact that in the third Test match at Lord's, there was no contribution from Gill with the bat. Despite that, India's batting line-up still managed to challenge England. So, that's a good takeaway -- we are not completely dependent on Gill,' he said on JioHotstar.

Gill's overall record in the series speaks volumes. The young opener has already scored 607 runs, with two Tests still to go. Manjrekar feels the break between matches will help the captain reset and return stronger.

'I believe he has the ability to carry forward his form,' Manjrekar said.

'During this break, perhaps with some introspection and conversations with his friends and father about the recent altercation. He just needs to focus on his captaincy, fielding, tactics, and batting. If he does that, I believe the run-making machine that was once in motion is well-oiled and will start running again at Old Trafford,' he added.

The third Test at Lord's was a close contest, one India could have won with a little more support from the top order. With England now leading the five-match series 2-1, the upcoming Test in Manchester becomes all the more crucial.

India's squad: Shubman Gill (c), Rishabh Pant (wk), Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Sai Sudharsan, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Karun Nair, Nitish Reddy, Ravindra Jadeja, Dhruv Jurel (wk), Washington Sundar, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammad Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Akash Deep, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav. (ANI)