If the Ashes are gone inside five days, with England 2-0 down with three to play, the post mortem into what went wrong on the pitch this winter may well be every bit as uncomfortable for English cricket as a whole heap of inquests into who did what to whom on a boozy night in Perth.

But as Root put it succinctly here yesterday, if his players produce the performance he demands, and deserves, in the third Ashes Test the dynamic of the whole series changes heading for Melbourne.

Bad publicity which has dogged England since they arrived in Australia will not go away on account of one win but victory here at the WACA would help alter the perception this touring party are on a three-month bender and also get them right back in it.

Root admitted it is not going to be easy. He is well aware of a record here at the WACA which details just one win for England in 1978-79 in 13 attempts. But he remains utterly convinced that this group have a win in them and with backs to the wall it has to be now.

“Ultimately we have to really smart in how we prepare and get things right in that respect. If we do that and have clear ways of how we go about things, that’s what will give us the best chance of winning, not looking at history and what’s gone before,” said Root.

“It’s this team doing what we do best for long periods of time and making sure that’s our sole focus.”

Australia may have England in something of a half Nelson in Perth but they have not won in two attempts here since the last Ashes. At the WACA, it will be their final chance in an Ashes Test here before the move to the new 60,000 Perth Stadium.

Two years ago New Zealand held them to a draw in a match which featured two double centuries and four hundreds then last year South Africa beat Australia by 177 runs after a big second innings saw them declare on 540-8.

The WACA have been told by Darren Lehmann to produce a faster track but the fact that all-rounder Mitch Marsh seems likely to boost their bowling ranks (coming in for the out of form Peter Handscomb) hints at insurance to save wearing out their fast bowlers if it is a flat one.

England remain convinced that they had Australia on the ropes in Adelaide even if it took them a while to get them there.

Root looks set to acknowledge they nearly got it right by naming the same XI with debutant Craig Overton keeping his place. Overton and the rest of England’s fast bowlers must probe the sorts of lengths they did in the second innings in Adelaide, bowling fuller even if it means going for a few more, then hoping to get some reverse swing as the ball ages.

Last year Kagiso Rabada won the match for South Africa running through Australia with pace, bounce, seam, both types of swing, yorkers and, crucially, the ability to target cracks which developed in the pitch late on.

So winning the toss would be handy for Root as batting last would not be ideal. England also will need to work out a way of shackling Nathan Lyon like South Africa did, in their second innings sending his 34 overs for 146 with no wicket and no maidens.

“We have to make sure we concentrate on that second innings at Adelaide and make sure that is everything that is on our minds and make sure we try to repeat that performance for five days in Perth,” said Root.

“Again, it’s frustrating again from a cricket perspective that, in a fragment of the game, we were extremely good and out-played Australia. But we need to do if for five days and not wither after fighting our way back into the game or leave the door ajar and let them back into it.

“We know what we have to do. We have to score more runs as a batting group.”

The other stuff Root insisted with good reason is not an accurate reflection on who this team are or how they behave but he knows that he is also aware that his captaincy is in danger of being tarnished unless there is a sea change in how they behave.

“That’s why as a group we have to make sure we perform well this week and win. Get people talking about the cricket,” he said.

“I understand that a few people feel let down but we’ve got to make sure we get it right on the field now and make sure for the rest of this trip people are talking about us in the right way, and that gives a fair reflection of the group we are.

“Ultimately, that’s what it’s about and if we win this week and go to Melbourne 2-1 then the whole dynamic of the series changes. We would have proved to ourselves that we’re right in this contest.

“We still believe we can win the series but we now need to prove that to everyone else. The only way we’ll do that is by winning.”

Batting long, forcing Australia’s quick bowlers into brutal spells in 35C heat, negating the threat of Nathan Lyon’s spin and finding a way to reverse the ball all look key. And then, like every gambler, Root will need a large slice of luck.