5 key takeaways for England after their capitulation in the Ashes

As Australia regained the iconic urn with a comprehensive victory by an innings and 41 runs at the WACA, it also marked the 8th successive Ashes defeat for the English side at the famous ground hosting its last Test match.

Now that Australia have taken an unassailable 3-0 lead over England, a whitewash looks quite possible. A clean sweep would open up the wounds from the 2013 tour, that ended the careers of the likes of Graeme Swann, Jonathan Trott, and Kevin Pietersen.

Here, we look at the factors that have contributed to England's humiliating loss and what might be the fallout of the Ashes Down Under.

#5 The 'Root' Cause

Joe Root's failure with the bat has been a constant problem for England

There have been a lot of question marks over Joe Root's captaincy during the ongoing series. His decision to bowl first in the 2nd Ashes Test at Adelaide was widely criticized. But all these problems have been compounded by his failures with the bat. This has been a recurring theme for the England captain.

However, there is no escaping from the comparison with Steven Smith and Virat Kohli. Joe Root scores a half-century once every 2.4 innings and a century once every 8.6 innings. Although Root has the best innings-per-fifty ratio, his counterparts boast of a better conversion rate when it comes to converting fifties into hundreds.

Steven Smith scores a century once every five innings while Virat Kohli takes approximately 5.5 innings to score a 100.

This was clearly evident in Adelaide Test, where after choosing to bowl (although a questionable decision), his side was on the brink of a historic victory as Joe Root was dismissed at the score 67, which then a caused lower-order batting collapse and an opportunity was lost to even out the series.

#4 The 'Cook' Conundrum

Alastair Cook's form is a serious cause for concern for England

By all means, Alastair Cook has been a great servant of the English cricket. The 32-year-old is the country's all-time record run-scorer in Test cricket, having racked up an incredible 11,712 runs across 150 Test matches. But the ex-captain Cook is struggling big time and he is now a mere shadow of the player used to be.

His determination to fight it out and build an inning is nowhere to be seen and now serious questions are being raised on his appetite to succeed at the highest level. He has scored just 83 runs in six innings, so far in the Ashes 2017/18, at a dismal average of 13.83.

In fact, he has now gone ten Test innings without reaching a half-century, a dry run which he had never experienced before. The 32-year-old has been on the losing side in 14 of the 18 Test matches he has played Down Under.

Newcomers Dawid Malan and James Vince played some fighting innings but they were severely devoid of any support from the senior partners.

The Ashes Down Under has a knack for ending careers of English cricketers and it seems this time Alastair Cook has his name written over this.

#3 Stuart's Broad's form a concern for England

Stuart Broad is having a dismal calendar year in 2017

Often hailed for his combative spirit, Stuart Broad has endured a disappointing Ashes tour. Broad remained wicketless and conceded 142 runs in his 35 overs during the recently concluded third Ashes Test at the WACA.

In fact, Broad's figures were the joint-second worst in Ashes history. His pace has dipped considerably with time and he looks out of sorts on the pacy and bouncy pitches Down Under.

In 2017, he has managed to claim only 25 wickets in 10 Tests with an ordinary average of 39.47. Out of these ten Tests, seven were played in bowling friendly conditions of England.

In Tests, the 31-year-old Broad used to be a major lower-order contributor from the batting point of view, where he amassed some crucial runs for his side in the past. But his confidence dipped sharply after a lethal Varun Aaron bouncer broke Broad's nose.

#2 Absence of Ben Stokes

Ben Stokes has been a massive miss for this English side

Any side in the world would miss the best all-rounder in cricket. Ben Stokes has the ability to change a cricket match single-handedly. He has played many innings for this English side and has the ability to score at a fast pace with the tail-enders. His bowling would have come handy on the bouncy wickets of Australia as he has an unusual knack for breaking a crucial partnership.

But the quality that this English side is missing most is his aggressive cricketing style. It has been seen during the entire course of the series, so far, that Joe Root has often set defensive fielding to stop boundaries after getting influenced by Stuart Broad, who has always preferred defensive options while fielding.

#1 Bright future awaits the trio

Dawid Malan after scoring a fantastic century in the 3rd test of Ashes 2017

Although England has yet again surrendered the urn Down Under, they might have unearthed three cricketing gems which bodes well for their future.

Dawid Malan has shown his class in both the innings at the WACA. His century at Perth was a reminder of the raw cricketing talent he possesses. His awe-inspiring drives even gave a glimmer of hope to the Barmy Army. If he continues to perform like this, he might become an integral part of the core that Joe Root might look for in the future.

Craig Overton after an injury in the third test

Apart from Malan, James Vince and Craig Overton also displayed the flashes of talent they possess. Vince played flawlessly in the second innings, until he was dismissed by what some might call 'the ball of this century'. Whereas, Craig Overton has shown gutsy behaviour, be it bowling or batting. On day two, he bowled for ten overs even with a hairline fracture.