India's unexpected 0-2 loss to South Africa in the just finished red-ball series has plunged the side into crisis.
Earlier this week, South Africa inflicted upon India a record loss in Test cricket, defying expectations. It was South Africa's maiden series victory in India in 25 years and the host nation's another home failure in just 12 months after a 12-year invincible streak.
The positive trajectory established in the last several months has all but vanished and the careers of multiple squad members - along with team coach the coach - now hang in the balance.
Initial Hope Disappears
The young team's commendable display in England this season, under a fresh leadership, indicated a successful handover post the close together exits of veterans R Ashwin, Rohit Sharma, and Kohli.
A straightforward 2-0 triumph over West Indies at the start of the home campaign boosted that belief, till the Proteas turned up and handed out a crushing loss.
India were somewhat unlucky that skipper Shubman Gill suffered an injury early on in the opening Test and took no further part in the contest. But that neither explains nor absolves the team of the highly disappointing display in the two games against the opposition.
A number of star cricketers were damaged, and multiple individuals aspiring to lengthy Test careers were exposed as not yet good enough - in ability or temperament - for the longer format.
A Troubling Pattern
This represented the second clean sweep at home endured by India in just over a year. In 2024, little-fancied the Kiwis had achieved a staggering 3-0 victory which effectively cost the hosts a spot in the World Test Championship (WTC) final.
The recent defeat to South Africa risks harming the team's hopes of making the showpiece of this season too.
Previously ranked third in the WTC table ahead of the matches, India have dropped to the fifth spot. Although nine additional matches are still to come, half of these are against the Aussies. Ordinarily, competing on home turf would be a huge advantage - including against the strong Australian side. But the debacles against the Kiwis and the Proteas offer no room for that confidence.
Reasons for the Slump
The national team's vulnerability in red-ball cricket has been clearly revealed. Nevertheless, the reason the team have struggled so much in Test matches on home soil recently is continues to confuse.
In the 21st century, the Indian cricket team were regarded as invincible in Test cricket at home. In demanding climates and on surfaces that assisted spinners and suited their batsmen and bowlers, the hosts brooked no opposition. A rare failure, like in the 2012-13 season against England, was viewed as an aberration.
Currently, India look to be vulnerable on home turf.
Facing New Zealand in 2024 and South Africa currently, the home side were beaten at their own game. The pitches they developed to favor their game went wrong completely, as the opposition capitalized on them more skillfully, beating the Indian batters and bowlers when it counted the most.
What's Gone Wrong?
A few experts argue that India is struggling at home because domestic pitches have been altered from spinning tracks to pace-friendly pitches to train the squad to perform better in foreign conditions.
A few mention that the Indian Premier League (IPL), in which numerous foreign cricketers participate, has removed the mystery and hardship subcontinental pitches would present to them in the past.
Even though there is a degree of accuracy in both analyses, it still does not explain the reason the side's results on home soil have seen such a staggering decline.
Several Weaknesses
The majority of ex-cricketers diagnose a multi-faceted challenge, not only one or two factors.
Analysts and squad members have pointed to multiple deficiencies after the team's humiliating loss to the South Africans: underrating the rivals, poor preparation, poor choices, excessive self-belief, frequent changes of the team lineup, and emphasizing limited-overs over the longer format.
This was evident in the performances of the side.
Players such as Pant and Yashasvi Jaiswal, of whom so much was expected, paid for their carelessness, while Sudarshan, Reddy, and Jurel - who were aiming to establish their place in the team - were found wanting in technique and temperament, suffering the consequences for their lackadaisical method.
Only a handful - Ravindra Jadeja, Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep, Mohammed Siraj and Washington Sundar - did justice to their skill and fame - but not well enough to secure victories.
Management Questions
The post-mortem also included the entire setup - selectors and support staff were also under fire, fuelled by upset followers and critical former players. At the centre of the criticism was team coach Gambhir.
At his post-series press
