IND vs ENG: 'Shreyas Iyer Is Not The Only Player Who Failed vs SA' - Sunil Gavaskar

Indian batting legend Sunil Gavaskar expects the Indian selectors to give an extended run to Shreyas Iyer in Test cricket. Shreyas Iyer’s performance in the recently concluded Test series against South Africa was quite underwhelming. Shreyas could only manage 41 runs at a dismal average of 13.67 in four innings during the two-Test series in South Africa.

Shreyas Iyer played a gritty knock of 31 runs on a tricky Centurion surface in the first innings of the first Test. However, in the next three innings, he could only manage 10 runs which included a six, a duck, and a four which completed the Test victory in Cape Town. Shreyas Iyer was playing his first Test series in South Africa and the conditions were very challenging for any batter in the series.

Sunil Gavaskar opined while speaking on Star Sports that Shreyas Iyer is not the sole underperformer for India in South Africa. He highlighted that apart from Virat Kohli and KL Rahul, no other batter could make substantial contributions with the bat, saying, “Shreyas Iyer is not the only player who failed because it’s not easy for any batter on these pitches. If you see, barring Virat Kohli and KL Rahul, no one else scored too many runs.”

The former India captain added, “You cannot point fingers at just one player. So I feel the selection committee will also think that he should probably be given more chances.” Virat Kohli (172) and KL Rahul (113) were the only Indian players to accumulate more than 100 runs and average more than 20 in the two-match series. Shreyas Iyer was the second-lowest in terms of average among the top six batters with only Yashasvi Jaiswal (12.50) behind him.

Shreyas Iyer Was Excellent At The ODI World Cup 2023

Shreyas Iyer may have had a terrible Test series against South Africa but he was one of India’s top performers in the recently concluded ICC Cricket World Cup 2023. He scored 530 runs in 11 innings at an average of 66.25. Iyer smashed three half-centuries and two centuries in the tournament which also included a hundred against New Zealand in the all-important semi-finals.

Shreyas Iyer may not have proven his worth in the red-ball circuit but he has a lot of potential and can be India’s answer to the No.4, and No.5 problems in white-ball and red-ball cricket respectively. India have backed Iyer on numerous occasions and he has impressed with his performances a lot of times. However, inconsistency is an issue with Iyer and he needs to overcome his problem against short ball to be a permanent member of the playing XI.

India will now face England in a five-match Test series at home which is scheduled to commence on January 25. The first Test will be played in Hyderabad and the Indian squad will be announced soon for the same. Shreyas Iyer is expected to be a part of the squad and it will be a huge opportunity for him to improve his average in Test cricket. He has played 12 Tests and has scored 707 runs at an average of 39.28.