Has there ever been a more brittle and fragile cricket side?

England are incredibly delicate. Frail of mind, frail of spirit and frail of body.

For the second time in three Tests, Nasser Hussain has been left a bowler short. Chris Silverwood could only manage four overs before joining the long list of injured English players.

You would have thought that the English brains-trust would have planned long and hard for this Ashes series. That they would have earmarked a squad who for a very long time would have winning the Ashes as their lone thought.

Instead, this tour has turned out to be a shemozzle and sadly an indictment on English cricket.

Losing isn't an issue.

Losing without dignity or respect is.

England could only field one bowler in this third Test who played at Brisbane. That one, Craig White wasn't even part of the original touring party!

From the five bowlers at the WACA, only Richard Dawson and Steve Harmison were picked in the initial squad. All this and the tour is not even at the halfway point.

On paper, England were always going to be out-matched. They were always going to do it tough. That was a given. What they had to do was assemble hardened cricketers who would be mentally resilient against the Australians.

Cricketers who would put us some semblance of a fight.

For the nanoseconds in the series where England seems to be gaining some level footing or edge, immediately a poor stroke brings about an English batsman's demise or some wayward English bowling and fielding lets the Australians off the hook.

The bowling especially has been a problem for the English. They have been bowling so poorly on this tour to date, you would think some members of the Barmy Army could do a better job.

Casting an eye down the top wicket-takers of the last county season, there are many names and not any of them are playing for England. Martin Saggers, Kevin Dean, Kabir Ali, Andrew Harris, Alamgir Sheriyar. Could these men do any worse than the walking wounded?

Ian Ward with 1759 runs made the most runs in county cricket. Where is he?

If county cricket isn't the breeding ground for future English Test cricketers, what is? If they don't value it as a system for producing Test cricketers, shouldn't the system be changed?

When they can't manage to score 400 and can't once bowl out the opposition for less, something is wrong.

You have to go back as far as 1950/51 for the last time a side won the first three Tests of a long Ashes series. (Australia swept the shortened 1979/80 series 3-0)

Given what has transpired on tour to date, Hussain will have to do something spectacular to prevent England losing 5-0.

© David Wiseman

This report does not necessarily represent the views of the Australian Cricket Board.