The Indian cricket team's shocking 0-2 defeat to the Proteas in the recent red-ball series has left the team reeling.
In the final match, South Africa inflicted upon India a record Test defeat by runs, against all odds. It was South Africa's initial series triumph in the subcontinent in a quarter-century and the host nation's second home series loss in just 12 months after a 12-year invincible streak.
The momentum built over the previous half-year has largely dissipated and the prospects of multiple squad members - as well as team coach Gautam Gambhir - are now uncertain.
Initial Hope Vanishes
The emerging side's commendable display in the UK this summer, under a new captain, indicated a seamless changeover after the close together retirements of veterans Ashwin, Rohit Sharma, and Kohli.
A straightforward 2-0 triumph over West Indies at the start of the home season boosted that belief, before the Proteas arrived to deliver a fell blow.
India were a tad unfortunate that skipper Gill got injured quickly in the initial match and was ruled out in the contest. Yet that neither explains nor absolves the squad of the well below standard display in each match against South Africa.
A number of star cricketers were damaged, and several players hoping for extended tenures in Tests were shown as not yet good enough - in ability or temperament - for the format.
A Troubling Pattern
This represented the second whitewash at home suffered by the Indian team in just over a year. Last year, underestimated the Kiwis had pulled off a staggering 3-0 win which essentially denied the hosts a spot in the WTC final.
The recent defeat to South Africa could damage India's hopes of qualifying for the showpiece of this edition as well.
After being third in the WTC table before the series, the side have been relegated to fifth place. Even though nine further games are remaining, half of these are against the Aussies. Usually, performing in familiar conditions would be a major plus - even against the powerful Australians. But the disasters against the Kiwis and the Proteas provide no basis for such assurance.
Roots of the Decline
The national team's weakness in red-ball cricket has been significantly highlighted. Nevertheless, the reason the team have struggled so much in Tests at home recently is still bewildering.
From the year 2000 onwards, India were regarded as impregnable in red-ball cricket in home conditions. Under sweltering weather and on surfaces that assisted spinners and suited their batsmen and bowlers, the hosts dominated all comers. The odd series defeat, like in the 2012-13 season against England, was considered an aberration.
Currently, the team appear to be beatable on home turf.
Facing New Zealand in last year and South Africa currently, India were defeated by their own tactics. The surfaces they developed to help their style went wrong completely, as the opposition capitalized on them more skillfully, surpassing the home team's players when it counted the most.
The Core Issue
A few experts argue that India is floundering in home conditions because domestic pitches have been modified from turners to fast tracks to train the squad to succeed abroad.
A few mention that the Indian Premier League (IPL), in which numerous foreign cricketers play, has removed the mystery and hardship Indian conditions would pose to them earlier.
Although there is validity in each argument, it fails to account for the reason India's performances on home soil have witnessed 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 pointed to several failings after the team's disappointing performance to the Proteas: underrating the rivals, poor preparation, questionable picks, overconfidence, frequent changes of the team lineup, and prioritising white-ball over Test cricket.
This was obvious in the displays of the side.
Members such as Rishabh Pant and Yashasvi Jaiswal, of whom high hopes were held, were punished for their nonchalance, while Sai Sudarshan, Nitish Kumar Reddy, and Dhruv Jurel - who were hoping to secure their place in the team - came up short in skill and mindset, suffering the consequences for their nonchalant approach.
A small number - Jadeja, Bumrah, Kuldeep, Siraj and Sundar - did justice to their talent and reputation - but inadequately to win matches.
Management Questions
The post-mortem also included the entire setup - team selectors and backroom team were also under fire, driven by distraught fans and critical former players. Under focus of the criticism was team coach Gambhir.
At his post-series press
