The news from Perth is that the catalogue of great English calamities in Australia has a brand new entry. For the first time in 104 years an Ashes Test match has been wrapped up inside two days and by the end of this eight-wicket mauling England’s players looked utterly broken.
Ben Stokes will doubtless push back at that notion, such is his refusal to ever throw in the towel. But as Travis Head slashed and carved his way to a breathtaking 69-ball century, vaporising a target of 205 in 28.2 overs, the psychological blow landed by the hosts felt greater than a 1-0 lead.
