The Indian cricket team's unexpected 0-2 defeat to South Africa in the recent Test series has plunged the side into crisis.
In the final match, South Africa handed India their heaviest defeat in terms of runs, against all odds. It marked South Africa's maiden series victory in India in a quarter-century and India's second home series loss in just one year after a 12-year invincible streak.
The momentum built over the past six months has all but vanished and the prospects of multiple squad members - as well as team coach Gautam Gambhir - are under scrutiny.
Early Optimism Disappears
The young team's impressive performance in England this season, under a fresh leadership, pointed to a seamless changeover following the almost concurrent exits of veterans R Ashwin, Sharma, and Kohli.
An easy 2-0 triumph over the Windies at the start of the home campaign boosted that belief, before the Proteas came and inflicted a fell blow.
India were a bit unlucky that captain Shubman Gill suffered an injury quickly in the first Test and did not participate again in the series. However, that neither explains nor absolves the squad of the highly disappointing showing in the two games against the opposition.
Several established players suffered, and multiple individuals eyeing lengthy Test careers were exposed as not up to the mark - technically or mentally - for the longer format.
A Troubling Pattern
It was the second whitewash on home soil endured by the Indian team in just a year. In 2024, little-fancied New Zealand had pulled off a remarkable 3-0 triumph which essentially denied India a spot in the WTC final.
The fresh failure to South Africa risks harming the team's prospects of making the decider of this cycle too.
Previously ranked third in the Test championship standings before the series, the side have been relegated to the fifth spot. Although nine more Tests are still to come, five of these are against Australia. Ordinarily, playing at home would be a major plus - including against the powerful Australians. However the failures against New Zealand and South Africa offer no room for such comfort.
Reasons for the Slump
India's weakness in red-ball cricket has been significantly highlighted. That said, the reason the team have performed so poorly in Tests at home recently is continues to confuse.
In the 21st century, the Indian cricket team were seen as impregnable in red-ball cricket at home. In demanding climates and on surfaces that favored spin bowling and aided their squad, the hosts faced little challenge. The occasional loss, such as in 2012-13 against the English, was seen as an anomaly.
Now, India look to be easy pickings in their own backyard.
Versus the Kiwis in 2024 and the Proteas currently, the home side were defeated by their own tactics. The surfaces they developed to suit their strengths went wrong completely, as rivals used them more effectively, beating India's batsmen and bowlers when it mattered most.
What Happened?
Some suggest that India is failing at home because home surfaces have been changed from spinning tracks to fast tracks to prepare players to perform better in foreign conditions.
A few mention that the IPL, in which several international stars participate, has reduced the surprise and difficulty Indian conditions would present to them earlier.
While there is a degree of accuracy in both analyses, it fails to account for the reason the side's results on home soil have experienced such a dramatic drop.
Multiple Failings
Many past stars point to a multi-faceted challenge, not only a couple of reasons.
Experts and participants have identified multiple deficiencies post India's disappointing performance to the South Africans: underestimating the opposition, lack of preparation, questionable picks, excessive self-belief, constant chopping and changing of the starting eleven, and prioritising white-ball over red-ball cricket.
This was clear in the showings of the squad.
Members like Pant and Jaiswal, of whom high hopes were held, suffered for their carelessness, while Sai Sudarshan, Reddy, and Dhruv Jurel - who were looking to cement their position in the squad - fell short in skill and mindset, paying a heavy price for their nonchalant approach.
Only a handful - Jadeja, Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj and Washington Sundar - lived up to their talent and reputation - but not sufficiently to win matches.
Management Questions
The analysis didn't spare not only the cricketers - team selectors and coaching staff were also criticized, fuelled by distraught fans and vocal past stars. Under focus of the scrutiny was head coach Gautam Gambhir.
At his post-series press
