Indian Test cricket is going through its most alarming downfall in over a decade. What was once India’s strongest, most respected format has suddenly turned into a confused, directionless mess. The decline didn’t begin today. It traces back to November 2024, when New Zealand humiliated India 0–3 in our own backyard — the first home Test series defeat since 2012. That whitewash wasn’t just a loss; it was a warning shot fired straight into the heart of Indian cricket. But no one acted. Then came the inevitable shift. Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and Ravichandran Ashwin retired from Tests ahead of the 2025 UK tour. Shubman Gill was handed the reins during a period of complete instability, and instead of steadying the ship, the slide accelerated. The recent home series against Temba Bavuma’s South Africa — another whitewash — exposed every crack, every misstep, every bad selection call made over the past year. Across four innings in Kolkata and Guwahati, India didn’t cross 200 even once. That is not just failure. That is system collapse. And at the centre of this freefall stands one question: Why is India building a Test team like a franchise T20 side?
Team Management’s T20 Dreams Are Destroying India’s Test Reality
Gautam Gambhir and the current management seem obsessed with the idea of creating a squad full of “multi-role” cricketers — players who can bat a bit, bowl a bit, field a bit. But Test cricket isn’t won by bits and pieces. It is won by specialists. By players with deep skills, not shallow versatility
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