“Do you think in terms of cricket, India are one of the most underachieving sports teams in the world? They haven’t won much in recent times. They don’t win anything.”
If Team India needed a reality check as to where it stands in international cricket despite the billions in its coffers and despite being ranked No. 1 across formats, former England skipper Michael Vaughan provided it during a commentary piece for Fox Sports. The innings and 32-run capitulation in Centurion, inside two and a half days, deserves a thorough inquest and questions need to be asked about how red-ball-ready this unit was when its players assembled for a two-Test assignment in a country where they have never won a Test series.Three years back, when India were bowled out for 36 in Adelaide, Vaughan had posted on Twitter, now X: “Told ya, India are going to get hammered in the Test series. Australia vs India 4-0.” We all know how well that turned out. It’s up to skipper Rohit Sharma and his men now to show Vaughan that his latest comment is also out of order.
The skipper needs to start with himself. After all the accolades for his turbo starts and leadership in the World Cup, it’s now time to shun the hangover of losing the final and take steps towards improving his average of 12.8 in Tests in South Africa.

He was the first India batter to hit a ton in 2021 (Chennai) and 2023 (Nagpur). If he shows better shot selection than he did and keeps the pull shot in his hotel room closet, may be 2024 can be added to the above list. Rohit was also tactically poor in Centurion and not bowling Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj immediately after lunch on Day Two was a curious decision. In the autumn of his career now, Rohit, 36, knows he is a better batter than just having one hundred in Tests in SENA countries in his kitty.
Rohit has plenty on his plate and lifting India from sixth in the WC table will be topmost on his mind. He will also be thinking of replacements to bolster the side’s batting and bowling. World’s leading allrounder Ravindra Jadeja should walk into the side as a replacement for Shardul Thakur. Jadeja missed the first Test because of a back injury and India missed his services.

Thakur, barring his 7-61 at the Wanderers in early 2022, has been profligate with the ball and his batting ability is purely notional. India missed a tall, hit-the-deck bowler in Centurion and the strongly built Avesh Khan, with 154 sticks in 39 first-class games, mostly for Madhya Pradesh, may be able to do what the South African quicks did. Floaty half-volleys on middle and leg, the kind that Prasidh Krishna dished out on debut at Super Sport Park, is not the way to go in South Africa.
The scanners will be out on Shreyas Iyer too. Does he have the skill and stomach to wear a few on his body like the retiring Dean Elgar did in Centurion and all through the last series two years ago? Or is he willing to be known as a batting star only in less probing conditions? The same applies to Shubman Gill. Since he asked for a No. 3 spot, his returns have been 6, 10, 29*, 2, 26. An average in the early 30s after 19 Tests should put him on notice considering the competition in India for spots.

The batters need not look beyond KL Rahul and Virat Kohli, the two players who negotiated the conditions in Centurion with elan, for inspiration and guidance.
The generous tinge of green, despite the baking the surface received under the sun, will keep the peerless Kagiso Rabada hungry for more success. The champion South African seamer has had the wood over Rohit Sharma, getting him out seven times. If Lungi Ngidi is fit enough to partner him and the pacy Nandre Burger, India’s batting will be tested again.