India's unexpected 0-2 defeat to South Africa in the recent Test series has sent shockwaves through the squad.
Earlier this week, the visiting team gave India a record loss in Test cricket, against all odds. This represented South Africa's initial series triumph in India in two and a half decades and India's another home failure in just a year after a 12-year invincible streak.
The momentum gained during the last several months has almost disappeared and the careers of a number of cricketers - including head mentor the coach - are under scrutiny.
A Promising Start Fades Quickly
The young team's impressive performance in the UK this season, under a different skipper, indicated a smooth transition post the close together retirements of veterans R Ashwin, Sharma, and Kohli.
An easy 2-0 win over the Windies at the beginning of the domestic season strengthened that view, until the South Africans turned up and handed out a crushing loss.
The home side were a tad unfortunate that skipper Shubman Gill got injured early on in the opening Test and took no further part in the series. However, that does not excuse or justify the side of the highly disappointing display in each match against South Africa.
Several established players were damaged, and multiple individuals hoping for long red-ball careers were exposed as not yet good enough - in ability or temperament - for the longer format.
A Troubling Pattern
It was the second clean sweep at home suffered by the Indian team in just over a year. Last year, underestimated New Zealand had pulled off a surprising 3-0 triumph which essentially denied India a place in the World Test Championship (WTC) final.
The recent defeat to the Proteas threatens to derail the team's chances of reaching the showpiece of this cycle as well.
After being third in the Test championship standings before the series, India have fallen to number five. Although nine further games are yet to be played, five of these are against the Aussies. Typically, performing in familiar conditions would be a huge advantage - including against the strong Australian side. However the failures against the Kiwis and South Africa offer no room for such assurance.
Causes of the Fall
India's vulnerability in the longer format has been significantly highlighted. That said, why the team have performed so poorly in Test matches on home soil in recent times is remains puzzling.
In the 21st century, the Indian cricket team were seen as unbeatable in red-ball cricket in home conditions. In hot, humid conditions and on tracks that helped spin and aided their squad, India brooked no opposition. A rare failure, like in 2012-13 against England, was viewed as an anomaly.
Now, India look to be easy pickings in their own backyard.
Against New Zealand in 2024 and the Proteas this year, the home side were defeated by their own tactics. The surfaces they developed to help their style went wrong completely, as rivals exploited them better, outplaying the Indian batters and bowlers when it was most crucial.
What's Gone Wrong?
A few experts argue that India is floundering in home conditions because home surfaces have been changed from spinning tracks to pace-friendly pitches to train the squad to perform better abroad.
A few mention that the domestic T20 league, in which numerous foreign cricketers take part, has taken away the mystery and hardship Indian conditions would challenge them with in the past.
While there is a degree of accuracy in each argument, it fails to account for why the side's results at home have seen such a staggering decline.
Several Weaknesses
Many past stars point to a multi-faceted challenge, not limited to one or two factors.
Analysts and squad members have identified several failings after India's disappointing performance to the Proteas: not respecting the foe, inadequate readiness, flawed selections, arrogance, regular alterations of the team lineup, and emphasizing white-ball over the longer format.
This was clear in the performances of the side.
Players such as Pant and Yashasvi Jaiswal, of whom so much was expected, were punished for their lack of application, while Sai Sudarshan, Nitish Kumar Reddy, and Jurel - who were hoping to secure their spot in the side - came up short in skill and mindset, suffering the consequences for their casual attitude.
A small number - Ravindra Jadeja, Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav, Siraj and Sundar - did justice to their talent and reputation - but not sufficiently to claim wins.
Leadership Under Fire
The analysis didn't spare the entire setup - the selection panel and coaching staff were also criticized, driven by distraught fans and vocal past stars. At the centre of the scrutiny was team coach Gambhir.
In his post-series press
