🔗 Share this article

The Indian cricket team's shocking 0-2 series loss to South Africa in the just finished red-ball series has plunged the side into crisis.

Just days ago, the visiting team gave India a record defeat in terms of runs, against all odds. It was the Proteas' initial series triumph in the subcontinent in two and a half decades and India's second defeat at home in just a year after a 12-year unbeaten run.

The positive trajectory gained during the previous half-year has largely dissipated and the prospects of a number of cricketers - along with head coach Gautam Gambhir - are under scrutiny.

Early Optimism Vanishes

The emerging side's impressive performance in the UK this summer, under a fresh leadership, pointed to a successful handover post the close together exits of veterans R Ashwin, Sharma, and Kohli.

An easy 2-0 victory over West Indies at the commencement of the domestic season boosted that belief, until the South Africans arrived to deliver a crushing loss.

The home side were a tad unfortunate that skipper Gill got injured very early in the opening Test and did not participate again in the contest. Yet that neither explains nor absolves the team of the terribly sub-par showing in both Tests against South Africa.

Several established players suffered, and multiple individuals hoping for long red-ball careers were shown as not up to the mark - in ability or temperament - for the format.

A Troubling Pattern

This was the second whitewash in home conditions experienced by India in just a year. Last year, underestimated New Zealand had pulled off a staggering 3-0 win which effectively cost India a place in the WTC final.

The recent defeat to the Proteas threatens to derail the team's hopes of making the final of this cycle also.

After being third in the Test championship standings prior to the contest, India have fallen to number five. Although nine further games are yet to be played, five of these are against Australia. Ordinarily, playing at home would be a significant benefit - even when facing the powerful Australians. Yet the disasters against New Zealand and South Africa offer no room for such assurance.

Causes of the Fall

India's weakness in red-ball cricket has been badly exposed. Nevertheless, the reason the team have struggled so much in Tests on home soil in recent times is remains puzzling.

From the year 2000 onwards, India were considered unbeatable in red-ball cricket in home conditions. In hot, humid conditions and on surfaces that helped spin and aided their squad, the hosts faced little challenge. A rare failure, like in 2012-13 against the English, was considered an exception.

Now, India seem beatable at home.

Facing the Kiwis in last year and the Proteas currently, the home side were defeated by their own tactics. The pitches they prepared to favor their game went wrong completely, as the opposition capitalized on them more skillfully, outplaying India's batsmen and bowlers when it mattered most.

The Core Issue

Certain analysts propose that India is failing at home because domestic pitches have been altered from turners to pace-friendly pitches to train the squad to do well abroad.

Others highlight that the Indian Premier League (IPL), in which several international stars participate, has taken away the surprise and difficulty subcontinental pitches would challenge them with in the past.

Even though there is some truth in each argument, it still does not explain why India's performances on home soil have experienced such a dramatic drop.

Several Weaknesses

Many past stars diagnose a complex, multi-headed problem, not only one or two factors.

Critics and players have pointed to various flaws following the team's humiliating loss to the South Africans: underestimating the opposition, poor preparation, poor choices, overconfidence, constant chopping and changing of the starting eleven, and emphasizing white-ball over Test cricket.

This was obvious in the showings of the side.

Cricketers like Pant and Jaiswal, of whom great things were anticipated, were punished for their lack of application, while Sai Sudarshan, Reddy, and Jurel - who were looking to cement their position in the squad - fell short in skill and mindset, paying a heavy price for their nonchalant approach.

Just a few - Jadeja, Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep, Siraj and Washington Sundar - fulfilled their skill and fame - but not sufficiently to secure victories.

Coaching Scrutiny

The analysis also included not only the cricketers - team selectors and backroom team were also under fire, driven by distraught fans and outspoken ex-cricketers. At the centre of the examination was team coach Gambhir.

At his post-series press