At Bloemfontein India sank to their fourth defeat in their last five Tests. Apart from the team members, there is one common thread running through all those losses ... Sri Lankan umpire Asoka de Silva. He was the ICC third-country official when India were humbled by Zimbabwe at Harare by four wickets. (India had won the first Test at Bulawayo, when Daryl Harper and Russell Tiffin stood.)

Mr de Silva then turned up as the home umpire in two of the three Tests that India played in Sri Lanka. India lost the first Test by 10 wickets, and the third by an innings and 77 runs. In the second match, when Mr de Silva wasn't there, India won a famous victory, chasing 264 in the fourth innings. Asoka de Silva has so far officiated in six Tests, four of them involving India – and coincidentally India have lost the lot!

We're not suggesting any malpractice here. India managed to underperform in all those Tests, and the umpires made little difference to any of the matches. And Mr de Silva's other two games were home Tests, and Sri Lanka lost both of those – to Pakistan and England.

Asoka de Silva didn't quite have the same success rate as a player. He was a legspinner who played ten Tests for Sri Lanka between 1985-86 and 1990-91, but never once finished on the winning side.

S Rajesh is a sub-editor with Wisden.com India.

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