On Thursday the final ever Ashes Test at the famous WACA ground in Perth will get underway, with England seeking a win to get themselves back in the series.
History will be against Joe Root’s side – they have only ever won one Test in the western Australian outpost back in 1978 and last avoided defeat there in 1986.
So what is it that so rattles England about the WACA? Sportsmail finds out…
The WACA in Perth is set to host its final Ashes Test match with play to begin on Thursday and England 2-0 down
The Fremantle Doctor sea wind brings a unique change in conditions between morning and afternoon
What’s so good about the WACA then?
The grassy banks, the blazing hot sun and deep blue skies make the Western Australian Cricket Association Ground one of the most typically Australian there is.
It’s unforgiving in the heat, sometimes hitting 40°C and is regarded as the fastest ground in the world.
The rock-hard clay, baked under the sun, creates a fast and bouncy pitch. Though it may not be as quick now as in its 1980s heyday, there’s no doubt it’s a place that both bowlers and batsmen relish.
It can be a batsman’s paradise if you get yourself in, but it can be a graveyard if you can’t get to grips with its unique characteristic – the Fremantle Doctor.
With its fast and bouncy wicket the WACA is traditionally the paciest pitch in the world but has slowed in recent years
What is the Fremantle Doctor?
The Fremantle Doctor is one of the great quirks in the world of cricket. It’s a cooling afternoon sea breeze that blows in from the Indian Ocean.
In the morning the wind arrives from the east, behind the old scoreboard. Then in the afternoon the Doctor blows off the river.
It occurs during the summer months in the south west coastal areas of Western Australia because of the major temperature difference between the land and sea.
It is so named because in Perth it appears to come from the nearby coastal city Fremantle, and it brings welcome relief from the summertime high temperatures
It also brings respite to frazzled fielders wilting under the afternoon sun.
The wind offers assistance to both spinners and swing bowlers, but can often play havoc if you haven’t sorted your line and length and get carried away. But it can make a batsman’s life very difficult indeed.
Australia’s players celebrate reclaiming the Ashes from England after victory in 2006 at the WACA
Andrew Flintoff and Andrew Strauss show the strain on another difficult day in the field on December 16 2006
Why are England so bad there?
If you thought England’s record at the Gabba in Brisbane was bad, you ain’t seen nothing yet.
England have won only once in 13 Test visits to the WACA. They’ve lost nine of them.
They last won there in 1978, and haven’t managed to avoid defeat since 1986. The past five losses there since 1998 have been exceptionally heavy, the worst coming in 2010 by 267 runs.
For England it has become a graveyard of their Ashes dreams – three times in the last four tours have they lost the urn there, as it traditionally hosts the third Test.
The unique conditions and intense heat make it difficult for touring sides, but for English cricketers it is completely alien.
The fast nature of the pitch is unlike any in England, and so the batsmen struggle to adjust to a wicket that provides extra pace and bounce.
English quick bowlers are generally a mix of nip and seam due to home conditions, and so lack the express pace to really exploit the pitch.
| Player | Span | Mat | Inns | Balls | Runs | Wkts | Ave | Econ | SR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GD McGrath (AUS) | 1993-2006 | 12 | 24 | 2988 | 1252 | 52 | 24.07 | 2.51 | 57.4 |
| MG Johnson (AUS) | 2008-2015 | 7 | 14 | 1701 | 1025 | 45 | 22.77 | 3.61 | 37.8 |
| B Lee (AUS) | 2000-2008 | 8 | 16 | 2118 | 1165 | 40 | 29.12 | 3.3 | 52.9 |
| MG Hughes (AUS) | 1988-1993 | 6 | 11 | 1618 | 752 | 39 | 19.28 | 2.78 | 41.4 |
| CJ McDermott (AUS) | 1985-1995 | 8 | 15 | 1781 | 847 | 38 | 22.28 | 2.85 | 46.8 |
| SK Warne (AUS) | 1993-2006 | 12 | 21 | 2855 | 1349 | 37 | 36.45 | 2.83 | 77.1 |
| DK Lillee (AUS) | 1974-1983 | 7 | 13 | 1856 | 817 | 30 | 27.23 | 2.64 | 61.8 |
| RM Hogg (AUS) | 1978-1984 | 5 | 9 | 1240 | 502 | 25 | 20.08 | 2.42 | 49.6 |
| JN Gillespie (AUS) | 1998-2004 | 6 | 12 | 1141 | 566 | 25 | 22.64 | 2.97 | 45.6 |
| CEL Ambrose (WI) | 1988-1997 | 3 | 6 | 639 | 310 | 24 | 12.91 | 2.91 | 26.6 |
No one has taken more Test wickets at the WACA than Australian great Glenn McGrath – who took a total of 52
Aussie quick bowler Mitchell Johnson took 45 wickets in just seven matches at the historic Perth ground
Where will the next Ashes Test in Perth be?
When England next tour Australia in 2021 they will probably be quite relieved to see the back of the WACA, the wrecker of many an Ashes dream.
Instead it will be the shiny new, imaginatively named Perth Stadium, where England will hope to have better fortune.
The 60,000-seater stadium opened just this week and hosted an England Lions tour match against Perth Scorchers.
It will officially open on January 21, 2018 when Australia and England play a one-day international.
It will be a multi-purpose area – also hosting Aussie rules football – and the third largest sporting venue in thew country, behind the Melbourne Cricket Ground and the ANZ Stadium.
England cricketers will be relieved to find out the stadium is an enclosed bowl, which should negate the effects of the Doctor.
The Perth Stadium, a spectacular new ground, is set to host the next Ashes Test in the city in four years’ time
The 60,000-seater will be a multi-purpose venue hosting cricket and Aussie rules football
What’s next for the WACA?
After years of botched plans for the future development of the WACA it has been allowed to drift into a throwback to a bygone sporting era.
But this is not the end of the historic ground, and it will continue to host Test matches against lower-drawing opponents.
Box-office Tests against the likes of England, India and South Africa will be played at the Perth Stadium, but the rest will likely be handed to the 20,000-seater.
Domestic Sheffield Shield matches will also be played there and there are plans for it to be redeveloped into the state’s leading cricket training facility.