The Indian cricket team's shocking 0-2 defeat to South Africa in the recently concluded Test series has left the team reeling.
In the final match, the visiting team handed India their heaviest defeat in terms of runs, against all odds. It marked the Proteas' first series win in India in 25 years and the host nation's second home series loss in just one year after a 12-year unbeaten run.
The positive trajectory gained during the previous half-year has all but vanished and the futures of a number of cricketers - including head mentor the coach - are now uncertain.
Initial Hope Vanishes
The new-look squad's commendable display in England this season, under a fresh leadership, indicated a smooth transition post the near-simultaneous departures of key players R Ashwin, Rohit Sharma, and Virat Kohli.
An easy 2-0 win over West Indies at the start of the home season enhanced that perception, before the South Africans came and inflicted a crushing loss.
The home side were a bit unlucky that skipper Shubman Gill was injured quickly in the initial match and was ruled out in the series. Yet that neither explains nor absolves the team of the highly disappointing performance in each match against the opposition.
A number of star cricketers were damaged, and multiple individuals aspiring to lengthy Test careers were exposed as still inadequate - in skill or mindset - for the longer format.
A Troubling Pattern
It was the second clean sweep in home conditions suffered by India in just more than a year. Last year, unfancied New Zealand had secured a remarkable 3-0 victory which essentially denied India a spot in the World Test Championship (WTC) final.
The latest loss to South Africa threatens to derail the team's prospects of making the decider of this season also.
Previously ranked third in the WTC table prior to the contest, the side have been relegated to number five. Even though nine more Tests are remaining, five of these are against the Aussies. Typically, performing in familiar conditions would be a major plus - even when facing the strong Australian side. Yet the debacles against New Zealand and South Africa offer no room for such assurance.
Causes of the Fall
India's frailty in Test cricket has been badly exposed. That said, why India have fared so badly in Tests on home soil lately is remains puzzling.
In the 21st century, the Indian cricket team were regarded as invincible in Test cricket in home conditions. Under sweltering weather and on pitches that favored spin bowling and suited their batsmen and bowlers, the hosts dominated all comers. The occasional loss, like in 2012-13 against the English, was seen as an anomaly.
Today, India seem vulnerable on home turf.
Against New Zealand in 2024 and South Africa currently, India were beaten at their own game. The tracks they prepared to help their style backfired spectacularly, as rivals capitalized on them more skillfully, surpassing India's batsmen and bowlers when it counted the most.
The Core Issue
Some suggest that India is floundering in home conditions because domestic pitches have been modified from spinning tracks to quick wickets to train the squad to perform better abroad.
A few mention that the domestic T20 league, in which many overseas players take part, has removed the unfamiliarity and challenge subcontinental pitches would pose to them earlier.
Even though there is validity in these views, it does not clarify why the team's showings at home have experienced such a dramatic drop.
Multiple Failings
The majority of ex-cricketers point to a complex, multi-headed problem, not only one or two factors.
Experts and participants have pointed to several failings post India's embarrassing defeat to the South Africans: not respecting the foe, inadequate readiness, questionable picks, excessive self-belief, constant chopping and changing of the playing XI, and emphasizing white-ball over Test cricket.
This was clear in the showings of the team.
Players like Pant and Yashasvi Jaiswal, of whom high hopes were held, suffered for their lack of application, while Sudarshan, Reddy, and Jurel - who were looking to cement their spot in the side - came up short in technique and temperament, suffering the consequences for their casual attitude.
A small number - Ravindra Jadeja, Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep, Mohammed Siraj and Washington Sundar - lived up to their skill and fame - but not sufficiently to secure victories.
Management Questions
The post-mortem also included just the players - team selectors and coaching staff were also criticized, spurred on by upset followers and vocal past stars. Under focus of the scrutiny was mentor Gambhir.
In his post-series press
