India's shocking 0-2 defeat to South Africa in the just finished Test series has left the team reeling.
Just days ago, South Africa inflicted upon India a record defeat in terms of runs, against all odds. This represented the Proteas' maiden series victory in India in a quarter-century and the host nation's second defeat at home in just a year after a 12-year unbeaten run.
The momentum gained during the last several months has almost disappeared and the futures of multiple squad members - along with team coach the coach - are under scrutiny.
Early Optimism Vanishes
The young team's commendable display in England this season, under a different skipper, suggested a smooth transition post the almost concurrent exits of key players Ashwin, Rohit Sharma, and Virat Kohli.
A facile 2-0 triumph over the Windies at the start of the home campaign enhanced that perception, until the South Africans arrived to deliver a crushing loss.
The home side were a bit unlucky that captain Gill got injured quickly in the initial match and did not participate again in the contest. However, that neither explains nor absolves the team of the well below standard performance in each match against South Africa.
Some big reputations suffered, and a few members eyeing lengthy Test careers were revealed to be not yet good enough - in skill or mindset - for the format.
Worrying Trend
This was the second clean sweep on home soil suffered by India in just a year. In 2024, little-fancied the Kiwis had pulled off a staggering 3-0 triumph which essentially denied India a berth in the Test championship finale.
The latest loss to South Africa risks harming India's chances of reaching the showpiece of this edition as well.
After being third in the WTC rankings before the series, India have fallen to the fifth spot. Though nine further games are yet to be played, half of these are against Australia. Usually, performing in familiar conditions would be a huge advantage - even when facing the mighty Aussies. However the debacles against the Kiwis and South Africa offer no room for such comfort.
Reasons for the Slump
The national team's vulnerability in the longer format has been clearly revealed. However, the reason the team have performed so poorly in Test matches on home soil recently is still bewildering.
From the year 2000 onwards, India were regarded as unbeatable in red-ball cricket in home conditions. Under sweltering weather and on tracks that assisted spinners and benefited their players, the hosts faced little challenge. A rare failure, like in 2012-13 against England, was seen as an exception.
Today, the team seem easy pickings at home.
Against New Zealand in last year and South Africa this year, the home side were beaten at their own game. The tracks they developed to suit their strengths backfired spectacularly, as the opposition exploited them better, beating the Indian batters and bowlers when it was most crucial.
What's Gone Wrong?
Some suggest that India is struggling in home conditions because home surfaces have been modified from turners to pace-friendly pitches to get cricketers ready to succeed in foreign conditions.
Others highlight that the Indian Premier League (IPL), in which many overseas players participate, has taken away the mystery and hardship home wickets would pose to them in the past.
While there is some truth in these views, it still does not explain the reason the side's results at home have experienced such a sharp fall.
Multiple Failings
Most former players identify a multi-faceted challenge, not only a couple of reasons.
Analysts and squad members have highlighted several failings post India's embarrassing defeat to the Proteas: underestimating the opposition, lack of preparation, flawed selections, arrogance, frequent changes of the team lineup, and prioritising white-ball over the longer format.
This was clear in the performances of the side.
Cricketers like Pant and Yashasvi Jaiswal, of whom great things were anticipated, paid for their lack of application, while Sai Sudarshan, Reddy, and Jurel - who were looking to cement their position in the squad - fell short in ability and attitude, facing the fallout for their casual attitude.
Only a handful - Ravindra Jadeja, Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj and Sundar - lived up to their talent and reputation - but not well enough to win matches.
Management Questions
The post-mortem also included the entire setup - selectors and coaching staff were also questioned, driven by distraught fans and critical former players. Under focus of the criticism was mentor Gautam Gambhir.
In his post-series press
