India's shocking 0-2 loss to the Proteas in the recent Test series has sent shockwaves through the squad.
Earlier this week, South Africa gave India their heaviest loss in Test cricket, defying expectations. This represented the Proteas' first series win in the subcontinent in two and a half decades and India's another home failure in just 12 months after a 12-year invincible streak.
The momentum gained during the last several months has almost disappeared and the careers of several players - as well as team coach the coach - are under scrutiny.
Early Optimism Disappears
The new-look squad's impressive performance in the UK this summer, under a different skipper, suggested a smooth transition after the almost concurrent departures of veterans R Ashwin, Rohit Sharma, and Kohli.
A facile 2-0 win over the Windies at the commencement of the home season boosted that belief, till the Proteas arrived to deliver a fell blow.
India were a bit unlucky that captain Shubman Gill was injured early on in the first Test and was ruled out in the contest. Yet that neither explains nor absolves the squad of the highly disappointing display in both Tests against South Africa.
Some big reputations suffered, and multiple individuals hoping for extended tenures in Tests were shown as still inadequate - technically or mentally - for the Test cricket.
A Troubling Pattern
This represented the second clean sweep on home soil suffered by India in just a year. Last year, underestimated the Kiwis had achieved a surprising 3-0 victory which practically cost India a berth in the World Test Championship (WTC) final.
The recent defeat to the Proteas could damage the team's prospects of reaching the showpiece of this cycle as well.
After being third in the WTC rankings ahead of the matches, the side have dropped to fifth place. Even though nine further games are still to come, a majority are against Australia. Usually, performing in familiar conditions would be a major plus - even when facing the strong Australian side. However the disasters against New Zealand and South Africa provide no basis for such assurance.
Causes of the Fall
The national team's weakness in the longer format has been clearly revealed. That said, why India have struggled so much in Test matches at home lately is still bewildering.
From the year 2000 onwards, the Indian cricket team were considered unbeatable in red-ball cricket in home conditions. Under sweltering weather and on pitches that favored spin bowling and suited their batsmen and bowlers, the hosts brooked no opposition. The odd series defeat, such as in 2012-13 against the English, was seen as an anomaly.
Currently, India appear to be vulnerable in their own backyard.
Against the Kiwis in last year and the Proteas this year, the home side were beaten at their own game. The surfaces they curated to help their style went wrong completely, as rivals used them more effectively, surpassing the home team's players when it was most crucial.
The Core Issue
Some suggest that India is failing at home because local wickets have been changed from turners to quick wickets to get cricketers ready to succeed abroad.
A few mention that the domestic T20 league, in which many overseas players participate, has reduced the surprise and difficulty home wickets would pose to them earlier.
While there is a degree of accuracy in these views, it fails to account for the reason the side's results at home have experienced such a dramatic drop.
Various Shortcomings
Most former players identify a multi-faceted challenge, not just a couple of reasons.
Analysts and squad members have highlighted multiple deficiencies after the team's embarrassing defeat to the South Africans: not respecting the foe, inadequate readiness, poor choices, overconfidence, constant chopping and changing of the team lineup, and emphasizing white-ball over red-ball cricket.
This was clear in the displays of the side.
Cricketers such as Pant and Yashasvi Jaiswal, of whom so much was expected, paid for their nonchalance, while Sai Sudarshan, Reddy, and Dhruv Jurel - who were aiming to establish their spot in the side - fell short in skill and mindset, paying a heavy price for their lackadaisical method.
Only a handful - Jadeja, Bumrah, Kuldeep, Mohammed Siraj and Washington Sundar - lived up to their ability and standing - but inadequately to secure victories.
Coaching Scrutiny
The post-mortem didn't spare the entire setup - the selection panel and backroom team were also questioned, fuelled by distraught fans and vocal past stars. At the centre of the criticism was head coach Gautam Gambhir.
At his post-series press
