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India's surprising 0-2 loss to the Proteas in the recent red-ball series has sent shockwaves through the squad.

In the final match, South Africa inflicted upon India a record loss in Test cricket, contrary to predictions. This represented the Proteas' maiden series victory in India in 25 years and India's another home failure in just 12 months after a 12-year unbeaten run.

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

Initial Hope Disappears

The young team's strong showing in the UK this season, under a different skipper, suggested a successful handover following the almost concurrent retirements of key players Ashwin, Rohit Sharma, and Virat Kohli.

A facile 2-0 victory over West Indies at the commencement of the domestic season enhanced that perception, before the South Africans came and inflicted a devastating defeat.

India were somewhat unlucky that skipper Shubman Gill suffered an injury early on in the opening Test and was ruled out in the contest. However, that neither explains nor absolves the side of the terribly sub-par showing in both Tests against South Africa.

Several established players suffered, and several players aspiring to lengthy Test careers were exposed as not up to the mark - in skill or mindset - for the format.

Worrying Trend

It was the second clean sweep at home suffered by India in just over a year. In 2024, unfancied the Kiwis had pulled off a remarkable 3-0 win which effectively cost India a berth in the World Test Championship (WTC) final.

The fresh failure to the Proteas could damage the team's prospects of making the final of this season as well.

From number three in the WTC rankings ahead of the matches, the side have fallen to number five. Even though nine further games are yet to be played, half of these are against Australia. Ordinarily, competing on home turf would be a significant benefit - including against the powerful Australians. Yet the disasters against New Zealand and the Proteas leave little scope for that confidence.

Reasons for the Slump

The national team's frailty in Test cricket has been badly exposed. However, the reason India have struggled so much in Tests at home in recent times is continues to confuse.

Since the turn of the century, the Indian cricket team were regarded as impregnable in red-ball cricket in home conditions. In hot, humid conditions and on tracks that favored spin bowling and aided their squad, the hosts brooked no opposition. A rare failure, such as in 2012-13 against the English, was considered an aberration.

Now, the team look to be vulnerable on home turf.

Versus the Kiwis in 2024 and the Proteas currently, India were hoisted by their own petard. The tracks they prepared to favor their game failed miserably, as opponents used them more effectively, surpassing the home team's players when it was most crucial.

What's Gone Wrong?

Certain analysts propose that India is floundering at home because home surfaces have been altered from spinning tracks to pace-friendly pitches to prepare players to do well in foreign conditions.

A few mention that the IPL, in which several international stars take part, has taken away the unfamiliarity and challenge Indian conditions would pose to them earlier.

Although there is a degree of accuracy in these views, it fails to account for why India's performances at home have seen such a dramatic drop.

Several Weaknesses

The majority of ex-cricketers point to a multi-faceted challenge, not limited to one or two factors.

Analysts and squad members have highlighted various flaws after the team's embarrassing defeat to the Proteas: not respecting the foe, lack of preparation, flawed selections, overconfidence, frequent changes of the playing XI, and emphasizing limited-overs over the longer format.

This was clear in the performances of the squad.

Players such as Pant and Yashasvi Jaiswal, of whom great things were anticipated, paid for their nonchalance, while Sai Sudarshan, Reddy, and Jurel - who were hoping to secure their place in the team - were found wanting in skill and mindset, suffering the consequences for their lackadaisical method.

Only a handful - Ravindra Jadeja, Bumrah, Kuldeep, Siraj and Sundar - lived up to their skill and fame - but not well enough to claim wins.

Coaching Scrutiny

The review also included not only the cricketers - the selection panel and support staff were also questioned, fuelled by distraught fans and critical former players. Under focus of the criticism was team coach Gambhir.

During his post-series press