India, Aug. 6 -- India's supremacy in Test cricket has been based on the fact that at home they were untouchable. It was largely due to the brilliance of their spinners.

The country never had a dearth of spin bowling options. When you have the likes of Bishan Singh Bedi, EAS Prasanna, Bhagwat Chandrasekhar, Anil Kumble, Harbhajan Singh, R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja at your disposal, the captain's job was always easy.

The beauty of the recent history was the seamless succession: the duo of Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh, in the 1990s and 2000s, was succeeded by the equally lethal combination of R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja.

When playing in home conditions, the captain had to give the ball to these pairs and enjoy watching them weave their...