The Indian cricket team's surprising 0-2 series loss to South Africa in the just finished Test series has plunged the side into crisis.
In the final match, South Africa gave India a record Test defeat by runs, contrary to predictions. This represented South Africa's initial series triumph in India in a quarter-century and India's another home failure in just 12 months after a 12-year invincible streak.
The winning rhythm established in the past six months has all but vanished and the careers of multiple squad members - along with head mentor the coach - now hang in the balance.
Initial Hope Fades Quickly
The new-look squad's commendable display in the UK this summer, under a fresh leadership, indicated a successful handover following the almost concurrent retirements of stalwarts R Ashwin, Sharma, and Virat Kohli.
An easy 2-0 victory over the Windies at the start of the home campaign strengthened that view, till the South Africans turned up and handed out a crushing loss.
The home side were a bit unlucky that leader Shubman Gill was injured quickly in the initial match and was ruled out in the series. Yet that fails to account for the side of the well below standard performance in both Tests against South Africa.
Several established players suffered, and a few members aspiring to extended tenures in Tests were shown as still inadequate - in ability or temperament - for the Test cricket.
Concerning History
This was the second clean sweep on home soil endured by the Indian team in just more than a year. Last year, underestimated the Kiwis had pulled off a staggering 3-0 triumph which effectively cost India a place in the World Test Championship (WTC) final.
The recent defeat to South Africa could damage India's chances of making the showpiece of this season as well.
From number three in the WTC table ahead of the matches, the side have dropped to number five. Even though nine further games are yet to be played, half of these are against the Aussies. Typically, playing at home would be a significant benefit - including against the strong Australian side. Yet the failures against New Zealand and South Africa offer no room for such comfort.
Causes of the Fall
India's frailty in the longer format has been badly exposed. That said, the reason the team have performed so poorly in Tests at home in recent times is still bewildering.
Since the turn of the century, India were considered unbeatable in red-ball cricket in home conditions. In hot, humid conditions and on surfaces that helped spin and suited their batsmen and bowlers, the hosts faced little challenge. A rare failure, such as in the 2012-13 season against the English, was considered an aberration.
Now, India look to be easy pickings in their own backyard.
Versus New Zealand in last year and South Africa this year, India were hoisted by their own petard. The pitches they prepared to help their style went wrong completely, as the opposition used them more effectively, beating the Indian batters and bowlers when it was most crucial.
What's Gone Wrong?
Certain analysts propose that India is floundering in home conditions because domestic pitches have been changed from spinning tracks to pace-friendly pitches to get cricketers ready to succeed overseas.
Others highlight that the IPL, in which many overseas players play, has removed the unfamiliarity and challenge home wickets would challenge them with before.
Although there is some truth in both analyses, it does not clarify why India's performances at home have witnessed such a staggering decline.
Several Weaknesses
Many past stars point to a complex, multi-headed problem, not only a few causes.
Analysts and squad members have pointed to several failings following the team's disappointing performance to the South Africans: underestimating the opposition, inadequate readiness, questionable picks, excessive self-belief, frequent changes of the playing XI, and prioritising limited-overs over Test cricket.
This was evident in the displays of the team.
Members 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 place in the team - came up short in ability and attitude, facing the fallout for their nonchalant approach.
A small number - Ravindra Jadeja, Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj and Washington Sundar - lived up to their talent and reputation - but not sufficiently to claim wins.
Leadership Under Fire
The post-mortem targeted the entire setup - team selectors and support staff were also under fire, driven by upset followers and critical former players. In the spotlight of the criticism was team coach Gautam Gambhir.
During his post-series press
