The Indian cricket team's shocking 0-2 defeat to the Proteas in the recently concluded red-ball series has sent shockwaves through the squad.
Earlier this week, the visiting team gave India a record defeat in terms of runs, against all odds. It was the Proteas' maiden series victory in India in a quarter-century and India's another home failure in just one year after a 12-year unbeaten run.
The winning rhythm built over the last several months has almost disappeared and the careers of several players - along with head mentor the coach - now hang in the balance.
A Promising Start Fades Quickly
The young team's impressive performance in England this summer, under a different skipper, suggested a seamless changeover following the near-simultaneous exits of key players R Ashwin, Rohit Sharma, and Kohli.
An easy 2-0 triumph over West Indies at the beginning of the domestic season strengthened that view, till the Proteas arrived to deliver a fell blow.
The home side were a bit unlucky that captain Gill suffered an injury very early in the first Test and took no further part in the series. However, that fails to account for the side of the highly disappointing showing in the two games against South Africa.
Several established players suffered, and multiple individuals eyeing extended tenures in Tests were shown as not up to the mark - in skill or mindset - for the format.
Concerning History
This represented the second whitewash on home soil suffered by India in just a year. Last year, little-fancied New Zealand had secured a staggering 3-0 win which essentially denied the hosts a place in the World Test Championship (WTC) final.
The latest loss to South Africa risks harming India's prospects of qualifying for the decider of this edition too.
After being third in the WTC rankings before the series, India have dropped to fifth place. Even though nine more Tests are yet to be played, half of these are against Australia. Typically, competing on home turf would be a major plus - even against the powerful Australians. However the failures against the Kiwis and South Africa offer no room for such assurance.
Causes of the Fall
India's weakness in Test cricket has been badly exposed. However, why the team have fared so badly in Test matches on home soil recently is still bewildering.
Since the turn of the century, India were regarded as unbeatable in red-ball cricket at home. In demanding climates and on tracks that helped spin and aided their squad, the hosts brooked no opposition. The odd series defeat, like in 2012-13 against the English, was viewed as an exception.
Now, India appear to be beatable on home turf.
Against New Zealand in last year and South Africa this year, India were defeated by their own tactics. The tracks they prepared to suit their strengths went wrong completely, as opponents capitalized on them more skillfully, surpassing the home team's players when it was most crucial.
What Happened?
Some suggest that the Indian team is struggling in home conditions because home surfaces have been altered from spinning tracks to pace-friendly pitches to train the squad to do well overseas.
A few mention that the IPL, in which several international stars participate, has reduced the surprise and difficulty home wickets would pose to them in the past.
While there is some truth in both analyses, it still does not explain why the team's showings on home soil have experienced such a sharp fall.
Various Shortcomings
The majority of ex-cricketers identify a multi-faceted challenge, not only a couple of reasons.
Experts and participants have pointed to several failings after India's embarrassing defeat to the Proteas: underrating the rivals, inadequate readiness, questionable picks, overconfidence, frequent changes of the team lineup, and favoring white-ball over Test cricket.
This was evident in the showings of the squad.
Players like Rishabh Pant and Yashasvi Jaiswal, of whom high hopes were held, paid for their carelessness, while Sai Sudarshan, Reddy, and Jurel - who were looking to cement their position in the squad - came up short in ability and attitude, suffering the consequences for their nonchalant approach.
Just a few - Ravindra Jadeja, Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj and Sundar - fulfilled their skill and fame - but not sufficiently to win matches.
Coaching Scrutiny
The analysis targeted not only the cricketers - the selection panel and support staff were also criticized, spurred on by disappointed supporters and vocal past stars. Under focus of the scrutiny was mentor Gambhir.
During his post-series press
