India's surprising 0-2 defeat to South Africa in the just finished Test series has left the team reeling.
Earlier this week, South Africa inflicted upon India a record defeat in terms of runs, defying expectations. This represented the Proteas' maiden series victory in India in two and a half decades and India's second home series loss in just 12 months after a 12-year unbeaten run.
The winning rhythm established in the last several months has largely dissipated and the futures of several players - along with head mentor Gautam Gambhir - are now uncertain.
A Promising Start Disappears
The new-look squad's strong showing in the UK this summer, under a fresh leadership, indicated a successful handover post the near-simultaneous retirements of veterans R Ashwin, Rohit Sharma, and Kohli.
A straightforward 2-0 win over the Windies at the beginning of the home campaign enhanced that perception, until the South Africans came and inflicted a devastating defeat.
India were a bit unlucky that leader Gill was injured very early in the first Test and was ruled out in the series. Yet that neither explains nor absolves the squad of the well below standard performance in each match against South Africa.
Several established players suffered, and multiple individuals aspiring to long red-ball careers were exposed as not yet good enough - in ability or temperament - for the format.
Worrying Trend
This represented the second clean sweep in home conditions experienced by India in just more than a year. Last year, little-fancied the Kiwis had secured a staggering 3-0 victory which effectively cost India a place in the World Test Championship (WTC) final.
The recent defeat to South Africa risks harming India's hopes of reaching the decider of this cycle also.
From number three in the WTC rankings ahead of the matches, the side have dropped to the fifth spot. Although nine additional matches are yet to be played, five of these are against Australia. Ordinarily, playing at home would be a huge advantage - even when facing the strong Australian side. Yet the debacles against New Zealand and the Proteas leave little scope for that confidence.
Roots of the Decline
India's weakness in the longer format has been clearly revealed. That said, the reason the team have struggled so much in Test matches at home recently is still bewildering.
Since the turn of the century, India were considered unbeatable in red-ball cricket at home. Under sweltering weather and on tracks that assisted spinners and suited their batsmen and bowlers, the hosts dominated all comers. The odd series defeat, like in 2012-13 against the English, was seen as an exception.
Today, the team look to be easy pickings at home.
Against the Kiwis in 2024 and South Africa this year, India were defeated by their own tactics. The tracks they developed to favor their game failed miserably, as opponents capitalized on them more skillfully, outplaying India's batsmen and bowlers when it was most crucial.
The Core Issue
A few experts argue that the Indian team is floundering in home conditions because domestic pitches have been modified from turners to fast tracks to train the squad to do well abroad.
A few mention that the Indian Premier League (IPL), in which numerous foreign cricketers take part, has reduced the surprise and difficulty subcontinental pitches would pose to them earlier.
Although there is some truth in both analyses, it still does not explain why the side's results at home have experienced such a sharp fall.
Multiple Failings
The majority of ex-cricketers point to a complicated issue, not limited to a couple of reasons.
Critics and players have highlighted multiple deficiencies following the team's embarrassing defeat to the South Africans: underestimating the opposition, lack of preparation, poor choices, arrogance, constant chopping and changing of the starting eleven, and prioritising white-ball over the longer format.
This was evident in the performances of the team.
Cricketers like Pant and Yashasvi Jaiswal, of whom so much was expected, paid for their carelessness, while Sudarshan, Nitish Kumar Reddy, and Dhruv Jurel - who were aiming to establish their spot in the side - fell short in technique and temperament, facing the fallout for their casual attitude.
Only a handful - Ravindra Jadeja, Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav, Siraj and Washington Sundar - fulfilled their ability and standing - but not well enough to claim wins.
Leadership Under Fire
The post-mortem targeted the entire setup - team selectors and support staff were also questioned, fuelled by disappointed supporters and vocal past stars. Under focus of the scrutiny was head coach Gautam Gambhir.
At his post-series press
