Invincible no more: Why India's Test cricket reputation lies in ruins

India's unexpected 0-2 loss to South Africa in the recently concluded Test series has left the team reeling.

Earlier this week, South Africa handed India their heaviest Test defeat by runs, defying expectations. It marked South Africa's first series win in India in 25 years and India's second home series loss in just 12 months after a 12-year unbeaten run.

The momentum built over the past six months has all but vanished and the futures of several players - as well as head coach Gautam Gambhir - now hang in the balance.

The young team's impressive performance in England this summer, under a new captain, suggested a smooth transition following the near-simultaneous retirements of stalwarts R Ashwin, Rohit Sharma, and Virat Kohli.

A facile 2-0 win over West Indies at the start of the home season enhanced that perception, till the South Africans arrived to deliver a fell blow.

India were a tad unfortunate that captain Shubman Gill got injured very early in the first Test and took no further part in the series. But that neither explains nor absolves the team of the terribly sub-par performance in both Tests against South Africa.

Some big reputations took a hit, and several players eyeing long red-ball careers were exposed as not yet good enough - technically or mentally - for the format.

This was the second whitewash at home suffered by India in just over a year. In 2024, unfancied New Zealand had pulled off a staggering 3-0 win which effectively cost India a place in the World Test Championship (WTC) final.

The recent defeat to South Africa threatens to derail India's prospects of reaching the final of this cycle too.

From number three in the WTC table before the series, India have been relegated to number five. Though nine more Tests are yet to be played, five of these are against Australia. Ordinarily, playing at home would be a huge advantage - even against the mighty Aussies. But the debacles against New Zealand and South Africa leave little scope for such comfort.

India's vulnerability in red-ball cricket has been badly exposed. That said, why India have performed so poorly in Tests at home recently is still bewildering.

Since the turn of the century, India were considered impregnable in red-ball cricket at home. In hot, humid conditions and pitches that helped spin and suited their batsmen and bowlers, India brooked no opposition. The odd series defeat, like in 2012-13 against England, was seen as an aberration.

Now, India look to be easy pickings in their own backyard.

Against New Zealand in 2024 and South Africa this year, India were hoisted by their own petard. The pitches they prepared to suit their strengths backfired spectacularly, as opponents exploited them better, outplaying India's batsmen and bowlers when it mattered most.

What's gone wrong?

Some suggest that India is floundering at home because domestic pitches have been changed from turners to fast tracks to prepare players to do well overseas.

Others highlight that the Indian Premier League (IPL), in which many overseas players participate, has taken away the mystery and hardship Indian conditions would pose to them earlier.

While there is some truth in both analyses, it still does not explain why India's performances at home have seen such a staggering decline.

Most former players diagnose a complex, multi-headed problem, not limited to one or two factors.

Critics and players have pointed to several failings after India's embarrassing defeat to the Proteas: underestimating the opposition, poor preparation, flawed selections, overconfidence, constant chopping and changing of the playing XI, and prioritising white-ball over red-ball cricket.

This was evident in the performances of the team.

Players like Rishabh Pant and Yashasvi Jaiswal, of whom so much was expected, paid for their nonchalance, while Sai Sudarshan, Nitish Kumar Reddy, and Dhruv Jurel - who were looking to cement their place in the team - fell short in technique and temperament.

Only a handful - Ravindra Jadeja, Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj and Washington Sundar - did justice to their talent and reputation - but not well enough to win matches.

The post-mortem didn't spare just the players - selectors and support staff were also under fire, fuelled by distraught fans and critical former players. At the centre of the scrutiny was head coach Gautam Gambhir.

In his post-series press conference, Gambhir brazened out the criticism and said that Test cricket needs tough characters. But this truism cannot obscure his own inadequacies in delivering results.

Some of his decisions were questionable. Like playing four spinners, three of them left-armers, in the first Test at Kolkata, or packing the team with all-rounders at the cost of specialists - as is done in white-ball cricket - or moving Washington Sundar from number three to number eight in the batting order, even though the youngster had done well.

The outcome of the series appears to be particularly adverse for Gambhir.

Of the last seven home Tests under his stewardship, India have lost five - a dismal record that critics say casts doubt on his vision, player evaluation, team selection, game plans, and overall role in nurturing both skill and temperament.

What the Indian cricket board decides on Gambhir's future, and the selectors about the many players who have failed to live up to potential in red-ball cricket, remains to be seen.

But for the moment, what is certain is that India's Test reputation lies in tatters.