Batting legend Sunil Gavaskar has asked the Indian selectors to be more patient with Shreyas Iyer despite his failure in the recently held Test series in South Africa.

Shreyas registered scores of 31, 6, 0 and 4 across the four innings of the two Test matches while batting at No. 5. He was extensively criticized for his exploits, especially his inability to handle the pace and bounce on South African tracks.

Iyer’s apparent weakness against short deliveries was exploited by the Proteas pacers throughout the series.

However, Gavaskar feels the middle-order batter should be given a longer run, citing that no Indian batter barring Virat Kohli and KL Rahul scored runs in the series.

"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," said Gavaskar while speaking to Star Sports.

Shreyas Iyer has played 12 Tests for India so far, scoring 707 runs at an average of 39.27 with one hundred and five half-centuries.

"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," Gavaskar added.

Both the Test matches during India’s tour of South Africa were played on pacer-friendly tracks. While the hosts won the opening Test in Centurion by an innings and 32 runs, the visitors bounced back to win the second Test at Newlands by seven wickets and levelled the series 1-1.

India’s next red-ball assignment is scheduled against England at home. The five-match Test series is slated to get underway on January 25 in Hyderabad.