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India's shocking 0-2 series loss to South Africa in the recent red-ball series has plunged the side into crisis.

Earlier this week, the visiting team handed India a record Test defeat by runs, against all odds. It marked South Africa's first series win in India in a quarter-century and the host nation's second defeat at home in just a year after a decade-plus without a home loss.

The positive trajectory built over the past six months has almost disappeared and the futures of multiple squad members - along with team coach the coach - are now uncertain.

Early Optimism Fades Quickly

The young team's impressive performance in England this summer, under a fresh leadership, pointed to a smooth transition after the near-simultaneous retirements of stalwarts Ashwin, Rohit Sharma, and Virat Kohli.

A straightforward 2-0 victory over West Indies at the commencement of the home season strengthened that view, until the South Africans turned up and handed out a devastating defeat.

The home side were a tad unfortunate that skipper Shubman Gill suffered an injury quickly in the initial match and did not participate again in the series. However, that fails to account for the side of the highly disappointing display in the two games against the opposition.

Some big reputations took a hit, and several players aspiring to extended tenures in Tests were exposed as not yet good enough - in ability or temperament - for the format.

A Troubling Pattern

This represented the second series sweep on home soil endured by India in just a year. Last year, underestimated the Kiwis had achieved a remarkable 3-0 victory which practically cost the hosts a place in the WTC final.

The fresh failure to South Africa threatens to derail India's prospects of qualifying for the final of this season too.

From number three in the WTC rankings before the series, the side have fallen to number five. 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 - even against the strong Australian side. Yet the failures against the Kiwis and South Africa offer no room for that confidence.

Reasons for the Slump

The national team's frailty in the longer format has been badly exposed. That said, the reason India have fared so badly in Tests on home soil recently is continues to confuse.

Since the turn of the century, India were seen as impregnable in red-ball cricket at home. In hot, humid conditions and on pitches that helped spin and benefited their players, the hosts brooked no opposition. A rare failure, such as in 2012-13 against the English, was viewed as an exception.

Now, India appear to be easy pickings on home turf.

Versus New Zealand in last year and South Africa this year, the home side were hoisted by their own petard. The tracks they curated to suit their strengths went wrong completely, as opponents exploited them better, beating the home team's players when it counted the most.

What Happened?

Certain analysts propose that India is failing in home conditions because local wickets have been modified from spinning tracks to pace-friendly pitches to prepare players to succeed in foreign conditions.

Some point out that the Indian Premier League (IPL), in which numerous foreign cricketers participate, has removed the surprise and difficulty home wickets would pose to them earlier.

Even though there is some truth in these views, it does not clarify why the team's showings at home have seen such a dramatic drop.

Various Shortcomings

The majority of ex-cricketers identify a complicated issue, not just one or two factors.

Analysts and squad members have identified various flaws following India's humiliating loss to the South Africans: underrating the rivals, lack of preparation, poor choices, excessive self-belief, constant chopping and changing of the team lineup, and prioritising white-ball over red-ball cricket.

This was evident in the performances of the squad.

Players such as Rishabh Pant and Jaiswal, of whom high hopes were held, paid for their carelessness, while Sai Sudarshan, Reddy, and Dhruv Jurel - who were aiming to establish their place in the team - came up short in skill and mindset, suffering the consequences for their lackadaisical method.

Only a handful - Jadeja, Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav, Siraj and Washington Sundar - lived up to their ability and standing - but not well enough to win matches.

Management Questions

The post-mortem also included just the players - the selection panel and backroom team were also under fire, fuelled by disappointed supporters and vocal past stars. At the centre of the examination was head coach Gambhir.

During his post-series press