India's surprising 0-2 series loss to the Proteas in the recently concluded Test series has left the team reeling.
Earlier this week, the visiting team inflicted upon India a record Test defeat by runs, defying expectations. This represented the Proteas' maiden series victory in India in two and a half decades and the host nation's second home series loss in just 12 months after a decade-plus without a home loss.
The momentum gained during the past six months has largely dissipated and the prospects of a number of cricketers - as well as head coach Gautam Gambhir - are under scrutiny.
Initial Hope Vanishes
The new-look squad's commendable display in the UK this season, under a fresh leadership, suggested a smooth transition following the close together departures of stalwarts Ashwin, Rohit Sharma, and Kohli.
A facile 2-0 win over West Indies at the commencement of the home season strengthened that view, before the South Africans turned up and handed out a devastating defeat.
India were somewhat unlucky that skipper Shubman Gill suffered an injury early on in the opening Test and was ruled out in the series. Yet that fails to account for the team of the terribly sub-par showing in the two games against the opposition.
Some big reputations took a hit, and multiple individuals aspiring to extended tenures in Tests were revealed to be still inadequate - technically or mentally - for the longer format.
Concerning History
It was the second clean sweep on home soil endured by India in just over a year. Last year, underestimated New Zealand had achieved a staggering 3-0 victory which essentially denied India a place in the World Test Championship (WTC) final.
The fresh failure to the Proteas risks harming India's chances of reaching the decider of this season as well.
From number three in the WTC table ahead of the matches, India have dropped to fifth place. Even though nine further games are still to come, half of these are against the Aussies. Ordinarily, performing in familiar conditions would be a major plus - even against the strong Australian side. However the failures against the Kiwis and the Proteas leave little scope for that confidence.
Reasons for the Slump
The national team's frailty in red-ball cricket has been significantly highlighted. However, why the team have performed so poorly in Tests at home lately is remains puzzling.
Since the turn of the century, the Indian cricket team were considered invincible in Test cricket at home. Under sweltering weather and on surfaces that helped spin and benefited their players, India faced little challenge. The odd series defeat, like in the 2012-13 season against the English, was seen as an aberration.
Currently, India look to be easy pickings on home turf.
Versus the Kiwis in 2024 and the Proteas this year, India were defeated by their own tactics. The surfaces they developed to favor their game backfired spectacularly, as opponents exploited them better, outplaying the Indian batters and bowlers when it was most crucial.
What Happened?
A few experts argue that India is struggling in home conditions because home surfaces have been altered from turners to pace-friendly pitches to train the squad to do well abroad.
Others highlight that the IPL, in which several international stars take part, has taken away the mystery and hardship Indian conditions would challenge them with earlier.
Even though there is a degree of accuracy in these views, it still does not explain why the side's results at home have witnessed such a sharp fall.
Various Shortcomings
The majority of ex-cricketers identify a complex, multi-headed problem, not only a few causes.
Critics and players have pointed to multiple deficiencies following the team's humiliating loss to the South Africans: underestimating the opposition, poor preparation, flawed selections, overconfidence, regular alterations of the team lineup, and prioritising white-ball over red-ball cricket.
This was clear in the performances of the squad.
Players such as Pant and Yashasvi Jaiswal, of whom so much was expected, paid for their nonchalance, while Sudarshan, Reddy, and Dhruv Jurel - who were aiming to establish their position in the squad - came up short in technique and temperament, paying a heavy price for their casual attitude.
Only a handful - Ravindra Jadeja, Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav, Siraj and Washington Sundar - did justice to their talent and reputation - but not sufficiently to win matches.
Coaching Scrutiny
The review also included not only the cricketers - team selectors and coaching staff were also under fire, spurred on by upset followers and critical former players. In the spotlight of the examination was team coach Gambhir.
In his post-series press
