The Indian cricket team's surprising 0-2 series loss to South Africa in the recent red-ball series has left the team reeling.
In the final match, the visiting team inflicted upon India their heaviest Test defeat by runs, against all odds. This represented South Africa's first series win in the subcontinent in a quarter-century and India's second defeat at home in just 12 months after a decade-plus without a home loss.
The winning rhythm built over the past six months has almost disappeared and the prospects of multiple squad members - including head mentor the coach - are now uncertain.
A Promising Start Fades Quickly
The emerging side's commendable display in England this summer, under a new captain, indicated a successful handover after the near-simultaneous departures of stalwarts Ashwin, Sharma, and Virat Kohli.
A straightforward 2-0 win over the Windies at the commencement of the home season strengthened that view, till the Proteas arrived to deliver a crushing loss.
India were a bit unlucky that captain Shubman Gill got injured early on in the first Test and took no further part in the contest. However, that neither explains nor absolves the team of the highly disappointing performance in each match against South Africa.
A number of star cricketers suffered, and multiple individuals hoping for extended tenures in Tests were exposed as not yet good enough - in ability or temperament - for the Test cricket.
A Troubling Pattern
It was the second whitewash on home soil suffered by India in just a year. In 2024, little-fancied New Zealand had achieved a staggering 3-0 win which essentially denied the hosts a spot in the Test championship finale.
The fresh failure to the Proteas threatens to derail India's hopes of qualifying for the decider of this cycle as well.
After being third in the Test championship standings before the series, the side have fallen to number five. Though nine additional matches are yet to be played, five of these are against Australia. Usually, competing on home turf would be a huge advantage - even against the powerful Australians. Yet the disasters against New Zealand and the Proteas provide no basis for such assurance.
Roots of the Decline
India's vulnerability in Test cricket has been badly exposed. That said, the reason the team have fared so badly in Test matches on home soil in recent times is continues to confuse.
From the year 2000 onwards, the Indian cricket team were seen as unbeatable in red-ball cricket in home conditions. In demanding climates and on surfaces that assisted spinners and suited their batsmen and bowlers, the hosts dominated all comers. The occasional loss, such as in 2012-13 against the English, was seen as an aberration.
Currently, the team look to be beatable on home turf.
Versus the Kiwis in last year and the Proteas currently, India were defeated by their own tactics. The surfaces they curated to suit their strengths went wrong completely, as the opposition exploited them better, beating the home team's players when it mattered most.
What Happened?
Some suggest that India is failing in home conditions because domestic pitches have been changed from turners to fast tracks to train the squad to succeed abroad.
Others highlight that the IPL, in which numerous foreign cricketers play, has reduced the unfamiliarity and challenge subcontinental pitches would pose to them in the past.
Although there is validity in both analyses, it fails to account for why the side's results on home soil have seen such a sharp fall.
Various Shortcomings
Many past stars point to a complex, multi-headed problem, not limited to one or two factors.
Critics and players have highlighted multiple deficiencies following India's humiliating loss to the Proteas: underestimating the opposition, inadequate readiness, flawed selections, overconfidence, regular alterations of the playing XI, and favoring white-ball over red-ball cricket.
This was evident in the performances of the team.
Cricketers like Rishabh Pant and Yashasvi Jaiswal, of whom so much was expected, suffered for their nonchalance, while Sudarshan, Reddy, and Jurel - who were looking to cement their place in the team - fell short in skill and mindset, paying a heavy price for their nonchalant approach.
Only a handful - Ravindra Jadeja, Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav, Siraj and Washington Sundar - fulfilled their ability and standing - but not sufficiently to secure victories.
Management Questions
The review also included just the players - selectors and support staff were also questioned, spurred on by distraught fans and vocal past stars. Under focus of the scrutiny was mentor Gautam Gambhir.
At his post-series press
