Under Steve Waugh, Australia reached the top of world cricket by zeroing in on opposition leaders – ruining rivals from the top down.

It’s an approach employed to great effect on their march towards an 5-0 whitewash this summer – removing England tormentors Alastair Cook, Ian Bell and Kevin Pietersen from the equation.

Last year, Bell proved the difference as England retained the Ashes with a 3-0 series win, smashing 562 runs at 62.44 including three centuries.

Three years ago, Cook was an immovable object as he cruised around Australia.

He plundered three centuries, including one double, en route to a monster total of 766 runs for the series.

And Pietersen has long been a thorn for Australia since debuting in the 2005 series.

But all three have been limited this summer, making no centuries and with only Pietersen averaging above 30.

After England’s top order again capitulated on day two at the SCG, slumping to be 5-23 before eventually being bowled out for 155, Australia’s Ryan Harris revealed how they’d targeted Bell.

“One of the main goals was to cut Ian Bell out and I think we’ve done that beautifully,” Harris explained.

Mission accomplished, according to England’s batting coach Graham Gooch.

When asked why the team’s senior players had been unable to get going on this tour, he replied: “There are three immediate reasons why they’ve struggled – Peter Siddle, Ryan Harris, and Mitchell Johnson … you have to give them credit.

“You’d still expect players of that calibre, with that record behind them, to score a proportion of runs and they’ve not been able to do it.”

In his 2013 book, The Meaning Of Luck, Waugh discussed the reasoning being expending so much energy on taking down the opposing skipper – it was to inflict as much mental scarring as possible, so that it remained in future battles.

“In my mind, the ideal way to do this was to target the leader of their pack,” Waugh wrote.

“This is often the captain, for he is the pulse of the team.

“The attitude and character of the unit are a reflection of his values.”

Gooch admitted the pressure of failing as a captain is felt two-fold, and hinted it might be playing a part in Cook’s fading tour.

“When things have gone the way they have and unfolded for us, there is more pressure and you feel more responsible as a captain,” he said.

“I know that feeling, because I’ve been there when we’ve won and I’ve been there when we’ve lost badly. So you do feel the responsibility.”