India, Nov. 27 -- Gautam Gambhir is a marked man these days. Anyone who has overseen a dramatic fall from grace of the kind the former India opener has is bound to be. For nearly a dozen years from the beginning of 2012, India didn't lose a single home series under the tutelage of Duncan Fletcher, Ravi Shastri, Anil Kumble and Rahul Dravid. Gambhir has been the head coach only since September 2024, and India have already lost two series in their backyard - 0-3 to New Zealand last November, and now 0-2 to South Africa.

New Zealand hadn't won a Test match in India since November 1988, South Africa's last victory came back in February 2010. Neither side arrived believing India were ripe for the taking, yet here we are, with Indian Test cric...