The Indian cricket team's surprising 0-2 series loss to South Africa in the recently concluded red-ball series has left the team reeling.
Earlier this week, the visiting team handed India their heaviest defeat in terms of runs, against all odds. It was South Africa's maiden series victory in the subcontinent in 25 years and the host nation's second defeat at home in just one year after a 12-year invincible streak.
The winning rhythm built over the previous half-year has largely dissipated and the prospects of several players - as well as head coach the coach - are under scrutiny.
Initial Hope Disappears
The young team's strong showing in the UK this season, under a fresh leadership, indicated a seamless changeover after the almost concurrent exits of key players R Ashwin, Rohit Sharma, and Kohli.
An easy 2-0 triumph over the Windies at the commencement of the home campaign strengthened that view, before the South Africans came and inflicted a fell blow.
India were a tad unfortunate that skipper Gill suffered an injury very early in the opening Test and took no further part in the series. However, that fails to account for the squad of the well below standard performance in each match against South Africa.
Some big reputations took a hit, and a few members aspiring to extended tenures in Tests were revealed to be still inadequate - technically or mentally - for the longer format.
Concerning History
This was the second whitewash in home conditions endured by India in just more than a year. In 2024, unfancied the Kiwis had pulled off a surprising 3-0 victory which essentially denied India a spot in the Test championship finale.
The fresh failure to the Proteas risks harming India's hopes of reaching the showpiece of this edition too.
Previously ranked third in the Test championship standings prior to the contest, the side have dropped to the fifth spot. Although nine more Tests are still to come, a majority are against the Aussies. Typically, playing at home would be a huge advantage - including against the strong Australian side. Yet the failures against New Zealand and the Proteas leave little scope for such comfort.
Reasons for the Slump
The national team's weakness in the longer format has been significantly highlighted. That said, the reason India have performed so poorly in Test matches at home lately is continues to confuse.
From the year 2000 onwards, India were seen as unbeatable in Test cricket in home conditions. In demanding climates and on surfaces that helped spin and suited their batsmen and bowlers, the hosts faced little challenge. A rare failure, such as in the 2012-13 season against England, was seen as an aberration.
Currently, the team appear to be beatable at home.
Versus New Zealand in last year and South Africa currently, India were beaten at their own game. The pitches they curated to suit their strengths failed miserably, as opponents capitalized on them more skillfully, outplaying India's batsmen and bowlers when it was most crucial.
What's Gone Wrong?
A few experts argue that India is failing in home conditions because home surfaces have been modified from spinning tracks to fast tracks to train the squad to succeed in foreign conditions.
Others highlight that the IPL, in which many overseas players play, has taken away the surprise and difficulty subcontinental pitches would present to them in the past.
Although there is some truth in each argument, it fails to account for the reason the side's results at home have witnessed such a sharp fall.
Several Weaknesses
Most former players point to a complicated issue, not just a couple of reasons.
Experts and participants have pointed to several failings following India's humiliating loss to the Proteas: underrating the rivals, inadequate readiness, questionable picks, arrogance, regular alterations of the playing XI, and favoring limited-overs over red-ball cricket.
This was obvious in the displays of the team.
Players like Pant and Yashasvi Jaiswal, of whom high hopes were held, paid for their lack of application, while Sudarshan, Reddy, and Jurel - who were looking to cement their position in the squad - fell short in technique and temperament, suffering the consequences for their nonchalant approach.
Just a few - Ravindra Jadeja, Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep, Mohammed Siraj and Sundar - lived up to their talent and reputation - but inadequately to claim wins.
Management Questions
The post-mortem didn't spare just the players - the selection panel and support staff were also questioned, spurred on by upset followers and critical former players. Under focus of the examination was head coach Gautam Gambhir.
In his post-series press
