The Indian cricket team's shocking 0-2 series loss to South Africa in the just finished Test series has left the team reeling.
In the final match, South Africa inflicted upon India a record Test defeat by runs, contrary to predictions. It marked the Proteas' first series win in India in 25 years and India's another home failure in just 12 months after a 12-year invincible streak.
The winning rhythm established in the past six months has all but vanished and the careers of multiple squad members - as well as head coach Gautam Gambhir - now hang in the balance.
Early Optimism Fades Quickly
The young team's commendable display in the UK this season, under a new captain, suggested a smooth transition following the near-simultaneous retirements of veterans Ashwin, Sharma, and Kohli.
A facile 2-0 triumph over the Windies at the start of the home season strengthened that view, before the South Africans turned up and handed out a devastating defeat.
The home side were a tad unfortunate that captain Shubman Gill was injured quickly in the opening Test and was ruled out in the series. However, that fails to account for the side of the highly disappointing showing in both Tests against South Africa.
Some big reputations were damaged, and multiple individuals aspiring to extended tenures in Tests were revealed to be not yet good enough - in skill or mindset - for the Test cricket.
Concerning History
This represented the second series sweep at home experienced by the Indian team in just a year. In 2024, underestimated New Zealand had achieved a remarkable 3-0 triumph which essentially denied India a place in the WTC final.
The latest loss to the Proteas threatens to derail India's prospects of qualifying for the final of this season as well.
From number three in the Test championship standings ahead of the matches, India have been relegated to number five. Although nine further games are still to come, half of these are against Australia. Typically, playing at home would be a significant benefit - even when facing the mighty Aussies. But the debacles against New Zealand and South Africa offer no room for such comfort.
Roots of the Decline
India's vulnerability in Test cricket has been clearly revealed. However, why the team have performed so poorly in Tests at home lately is remains puzzling.
In the 21st century, India were considered invincible in red-ball cricket in home conditions. Under sweltering weather and on tracks that favored spin bowling and aided their squad, India faced little challenge. A rare failure, like in 2012-13 against England, was seen as an anomaly.
Now, India appear to be vulnerable in their own backyard.
Facing New Zealand in last year and the Proteas currently, the home side were hoisted by their own petard. The pitches they developed to suit their strengths went wrong completely, as opponents used them more effectively, surpassing the home team's players when it counted the most.
What's Gone Wrong?
Certain analysts propose that India is floundering at home because domestic pitches have been changed from spinning tracks to quick wickets to get cricketers ready to do well abroad.
A few mention that the Indian Premier League (IPL), in which several international stars play, has removed the unfamiliarity and challenge Indian conditions would present to them earlier.
Although there is some truth in each argument, it fails to account for the reason the team's showings at home have seen such a staggering decline.
Several Weaknesses
Many past stars point to a complex, multi-headed problem, not just a couple of reasons.
Experts and participants have highlighted multiple deficiencies post the team's embarrassing defeat to the South Africans: underrating the rivals, inadequate readiness, questionable picks, overconfidence, regular alterations of the starting eleven, and favoring white-ball over the longer format.
This was evident in the displays of the squad.
Cricketers such as Pant and Jaiswal, of whom great things were anticipated, paid for their nonchalance, while Sai Sudarshan, Reddy, and Jurel - who were hoping to secure their position in the squad - came up short in skill and mindset, facing the fallout for their nonchalant approach.
Only a handful - Jadeja, Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj and Washington Sundar - fulfilled their ability and standing - but inadequately to win matches.
Coaching Scrutiny
The post-mortem also included the entire setup - the selection panel and support staff were also criticized, driven by distraught fans and vocal past stars. Under focus of the criticism was head coach Gambhir.
During his post-series press
