Hapless England need to take tough decisions after Ashes capitulation

PERTH: England will have to make some tough decisions about the futures of some of their most decorated senior players after they were ruthlessly exposed by Australia in a 15-day Ashes capitulation.

Joe Root’s team head to Melbourne 3-0 down in the five-match series after being subjected to an innings and 41-run hiding in the third Test at the WACA, where opener Alastair Cook and paceman Stuart Broad failed to deliver yet again.

English hopes that Cook could channel the Herculean effort that saw him score 766 runs in their 2010/11 triumph Down Under have proved forlorn. The veteran left-hander has instead reprised his form from the away series of 2013/14 when he stumbled through a 5-0 whitewash under the yoke of captaincy.

Despite being relieved of the leadership burden this time around, Cook has ‘supported’ his successor Root with only 83 runs at an average of 13.83 this series, comfortably t he lowest of England’s specialist batsmen.

Broad, meanwhile, has managed only five wickets at an average of 61.80 and suffered the worst Test figures of his career at the WACA, where he went wicketless for 142 runs.

His pace partner James Anderson has battled manfully through a difficult campaign, but at the age of 35 the long-serving Lancastrian may not be able or willing to lead England’s pace attack far into the future.

Australia has often proved to be a tour too far for veteran England players, as was shown by the 2013/14 debacle which ended the careers of Graeme Swann, Matt Prior and Kevin Pietersen.

That whitewash also led to the departure of director Andy Flower.