India, Oct. 21 -- India's World Cup campaign seems stuck in a familiar loop - mistakes, explanations, disappointments.

Now, with three semi-final spots taken and three losses on the trot for India, their upcoming clash against New Zealand becomes a crunch, high-pressure game for their knockout hopes. But how did the co-hosts end up in this spot of bother, in what was expected to be a relatively easy route into the last four? There are some systemic problems, but also a few obvious answers.

After the loss to Australia, coach Amol Muzumdar said there would be a long discussion about the team combination. And by the looks of it, they did have one, with Jemimah Rodrigues being dropped for Renuka Thakur against England. Although it initially...