Tuesday 12 December 2017 18:54, UK
As bad-luck venues go, the WACA is definitely a place England undeniably suffer great pains at, with Perth seemingly no friend of the team on or off the field currently.
With a miserable Ashes record of played 12, won one, lost eight and drawn three, there seems to be a hoodoo that surrounds any English side that steps foot onto the pitch.
Losing the third Test against Australia - which begins on Thursday - would see the visitors surrender the urn like they did in 2013 and make it eight consecutive defeats at the ground.
Ahead of the crucial match, Sky Sports Cricket looks back at some of their worst defeats, a commendable draw and that one solitary victory that England should take hope from...
There was a time when England enjoyed a relative amount of success in Australia and during their victorious 1986/87 series, Perth proved to be a batsman's paradise as England racked up the runs in their first innings after Mike Gatting opted to bat.
Centuries for Chris Broad (162), David Gower (136) and wicketkeeper Jack Richards (133) were the highlights of a dominant batting display from the away side, and although Allan Border hit back with a hundred of his own for Australia, England took a 191 first-innings lead as Graham Dilley picked up 4-79.
Gatting's 70 helped the visitors reach 199-8 before they declared to set the hosts 391 to win with one day of the Test remaining. Australia battled to a draw in the second Test but it was England who walked away with urn at the end of the series.
Back when cricketers still enjoyed a rest day - making five-day Test matches six days long - England headed to the final Test of the 1990/91 series at the WACA already trailing 2-0 and having lost the Ashes.
Graham Gooch won the toss and was indebted to Allan Lamb who made 91 and shared a 141-run third-wicket partnership with Robin Smith (58) to take the visitors to a respectable 244.
Half-centuries from David Boon and Greg Matthews gave Australia a slender 63-run first-innings lead but England capitulated in their second innings with only Michael Atherton (25), Smith (43) and Phil Newport (40 not out) making double figures as they were bowled out for 182.
It allowed Geoff Marsh (63 not out) and Boon (30 not out) to complete the simplest of four-day victories (over five days) and so began a run of seven consecutive losses in Perth.
Without an Ashes series win in 12 years, England headed to Australia in 1998/99 with plenty of doubts over their ability to be competitive against their rivals.
Having been inserted in to bat, the hosts whittled through the visitors' batting line-up as Damian Fleming (5-46) and Glenn McGarth (3-37) ran amok to bowl the away side out for just 112.
Australia captain Mark Taylor hit 61 to give his side a 128-run first-innings lead and although England put up slightly more of a fight in their second innings, Jason Gillespie's five-wicket haul left the home side requiring just 64 runs to clinch a convincing win and take a 1-0 series lead.
One thing this current England side can be grateful for on this tour is that they do not have to face fast bowlers Mitchell Johnson and Ryan Harris, who tormented them in Perth during the 2010/11 series.
With England having drawn the first Test and won the second in Adelaide by an innings and 71 runs, they headed to the WACA full of confidence. After choosing to bowl first, they had the hosts 69-5 inside 30 overs before half-centuries from Michael Hussey, Brad Haddin and Johnson saw Australia battle back.
Although England began their first innings solidly, reaching 78-0, a devastating spell of bowling from Johnson (6-38) gave the home side an 89-run advantage and a second-innings century from Hussey left the visitors requiring an unlikely 391 runs to win.
Jonathan Trott's 31 was the highest score of England's second innings, as they succumbed to a masterclass from Harris (6-47) and fell back down to earth with a thumping loss. The victory, though, proved to be Australia's solitary win as England won the Ashes away from home for the first time in 24 years.
The 1970s: a time when England enjoyed a relative level of dominance in the Ashes and there was no such thing as a WACA voodoo.
Australia's decision to insert England into bat looked to backfire after Geoffrey Boycott (77) and Gower (102) shared a 158-run fourth-wicket partnership.
In response, Peter Toohey (81 not out) was the only batsman to make a dent in the home side's first innings as Bob Willis' five-wicket haul earned the away side a 119-run first-innings lead.
Another solid batting performance meant the hosts were set 328 runs to win but a brilliant all-round bowling performance, which included John Level taking 4-28 and Geoff Miller taking 3-21, gave England a 166-run victory.
