🔗 Share this article

India's unexpected 0-2 loss to the Proteas in the recent Test series has sent shockwaves through the squad.

In the final match, the visiting team gave India a record loss in Test cricket, against all odds. It marked the Proteas' first series win in the subcontinent in 25 years and India's second home series loss in just a year after a 12-year unbeaten run.

The positive trajectory established in the past six months has largely dissipated and the futures of several players - along with team coach Gautam Gambhir - are under scrutiny.

Early Optimism Disappears

The young team's impressive performance in England this summer, under a different skipper, indicated a seamless changeover post the close together exits of key players R Ashwin, Sharma, and Virat Kohli.

A facile 2-0 win over West Indies at the start of the home season enhanced that perception, before the Proteas arrived to deliver a fell blow.

India were a bit unlucky that skipper Gill was injured early on in the initial match and was ruled out in the contest. Yet that fails to account for the squad of the terribly sub-par display in each match against the opposition.

A number of star cricketers suffered, and a few members eyeing lengthy Test careers were shown as not up to the mark - in ability or temperament - for the format.

Concerning History

This was the second clean sweep in home conditions suffered by India in just a year. In 2024, unfancied New Zealand had secured a staggering 3-0 win which effectively cost India a place in the Test championship finale.

The latest loss to South Africa threatens to derail the team's hopes of qualifying for the showpiece of this season also.

Previously ranked third in the Test championship standings before the series, the side have dropped to the fifth spot. Even though nine further games are still to come, half of these are against Australia. Typically, competing on home turf would be a huge advantage - including against the mighty Aussies. But the failures against New Zealand and South Africa leave little scope for such comfort.

Causes of the Fall

India's frailty in red-ball cricket has been badly exposed. That said, why India have performed so poorly in Tests on home soil recently is still bewildering.

Since the turn of the century, India were seen as impregnable in red-ball cricket in home conditions. In demanding climates and on surfaces that favored spin bowling and suited their batsmen and bowlers, India faced little challenge. A rare failure, like in the 2012-13 season against the English, was viewed as an anomaly.

Now, India appear to be beatable at home.

Facing the Kiwis in last year and the Proteas currently, India were beaten at their own game. The pitches they developed to favor their game backfired spectacularly, as rivals used them more effectively, beating the home team's players when it mattered most.

What Happened?

Some suggest that India is failing at home because domestic pitches have been modified from turners to fast tracks to get cricketers ready to succeed abroad.

Others highlight that the domestic T20 league, in which several international stars play, has removed the unfamiliarity and challenge home wickets would present to them before.

Even though there is validity in each argument, it does not clarify why the team's showings at home have experienced such a sharp fall.

Multiple Failings

Many past stars identify a complicated issue, not limited to one or two factors.

Experts and participants have identified multiple deficiencies following the team's humiliating loss to the South Africans: underrating the rivals, inadequate readiness, flawed selections, arrogance, frequent changes of the playing XI, and emphasizing limited-overs over the longer format.

This was obvious in the showings of the squad.

Players like Rishabh Pant and Yashasvi Jaiswal, of whom great things were anticipated, paid for their carelessness, while Sudarshan, Nitish Kumar Reddy, and Jurel - who were aiming to establish their position in the squad - were found wanting in technique and temperament, suffering the consequences for their lackadaisical method.

A small number - Jadeja, Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj and Sundar - lived up to their talent and reputation - but not sufficiently to claim wins.

Coaching Scrutiny

The post-mortem didn't spare not only the cricketers - selectors and backroom team were also criticized, driven by disappointed supporters and critical former players. At the centre of the criticism was head coach Gautam Gambhir.

At his post-series press