India's surprising 0-2 loss to South Africa in the just finished red-ball series has plunged the side into crisis.
Just days ago, the visiting team handed India their heaviest defeat in terms of runs, contrary to predictions. It marked the Proteas' initial series triumph in India in 25 years and the host nation's another home failure in just 12 months after a 12-year unbeaten run.
The positive trajectory established in the last several months has almost disappeared and the prospects of several players - including head mentor the coach - are now uncertain.
Initial Hope Disappears
The new-look squad's impressive performance in the UK this summer, under a fresh leadership, pointed to a seamless changeover after the close together retirements of veterans Ashwin, Sharma, and Kohli.
A facile 2-0 triumph over West Indies at the commencement of the domestic season strengthened that view, before the South Africans came and inflicted a crushing loss.
India were somewhat unlucky that skipper Gill got injured quickly in the first Test and took no further part in the series. However, that does not excuse or justify the side of the terribly sub-par performance in the two games against the opposition.
Several established players were damaged, and several players aspiring to extended tenures in Tests were revealed to be not up to the mark - in ability or temperament - for the Test cricket.
A Troubling Pattern
This represented the second series sweep at home experienced by India in just more than a year. Last year, unfancied New Zealand had achieved a staggering 3-0 win which practically cost India a berth in the Test championship finale.
The latest loss to South Africa risks harming the team's chances of making the showpiece of this edition as well.
From number three in the WTC table ahead of the matches, the side have been relegated to fifth place. Although nine further games are remaining, five of these are against Australia. Typically, playing at home would be a huge advantage - even when facing the powerful Australians. But the debacles against the Kiwis and South Africa offer no room for such assurance.
Causes of the Fall
India's weakness in Test cricket has been badly exposed. That said, why the team have fared so badly in Test matches on home soil lately is remains puzzling.
In the 21st century, India were regarded as invincible in red-ball cricket at home. In hot, humid conditions and on tracks that favored spin bowling and suited their batsmen and bowlers, the hosts dominated all comers. The odd series defeat, like in the 2012-13 season against the English, was considered an exception.
Today, the team appear to be easy pickings on home turf.
Facing the Kiwis in 2024 and the Proteas currently, India were defeated by their own tactics. The surfaces they developed to suit their strengths went wrong completely, as the opposition capitalized on them more skillfully, surpassing India's batsmen and bowlers when it was most crucial.
What's Gone Wrong?
A few experts argue that India is struggling at home because home surfaces have been changed from turners to fast tracks to prepare players to perform better abroad.
Others highlight that the Indian Premier League (IPL), in which many overseas players take part, has taken away the unfamiliarity and challenge subcontinental pitches would pose to them in the past.
Even though there is a degree of accuracy in each argument, it fails to account for the reason India's performances on home soil have witnessed such a sharp fall.
Various Shortcomings
Many past stars diagnose a multi-faceted challenge, not just one or two factors.
Analysts and squad members have pointed to various flaws following India's disappointing performance to the South Africans: not respecting the foe, poor preparation, poor choices, overconfidence, regular alterations of the playing XI, and emphasizing white-ball over the longer format.
This was evident in the performances of the team.
Players such as Pant and Jaiswal, of whom great things were anticipated, were punished for their nonchalance, while Sai Sudarshan, Nitish Kumar Reddy, and Dhruv Jurel - who were aiming to establish their spot in the side - were found wanting in ability and attitude, paying a heavy price for their casual attitude.
Just a few - Jadeja, Bumrah, Kuldeep, Siraj and Sundar - lived up to their skill and fame - but not sufficiently to claim wins.
Management Questions
The post-mortem also included the entire setup - team selectors and support staff were also criticized, spurred on by disappointed supporters and critical former players. At the centre of the examination was head coach Gambhir.
In his post-series press
