One of the most chaotic Ashes tours in history reaches its conclusion in the next few days – but the uncertainty surrounding English cricket is far from over.
In contrast to the Derwent River that forms a shimmering backdrop to Hobart's Bellerive Oval, choppy waters lie in wait for Joe Root's England, with not many players certain of their long-term place, and speculation continuing to dog the future of Chris Silverwood.
Root's endorsement of him ahead of a game that doubles up as the final Test and Tasmania's Ashes debut might have been nothing more than the humane response of a captain unwilling to blame his coach for Australia's 3-0 lead – especially since Silverwood has just emerged from the quarantine that meant he could follow the tense draw at Sydney only on TV.
The Blundstone Arena in Hobart is poised to host the fifth and final Ashes Test
Doubts remain over the future of Joe Root (left) as captain and coach Chris Silverwood (right)
But no one's job is safe after the thrashings in Brisbane, Adelaide and Melbourne – not Silverwood's, not managing director Ashley Giles's, not even Root's, though it is hard to see a feasible alternative.
Even so, the end of the series is upon us, bringing with it a strange question: who exactly should the players be trying to impress in the days ahead?
Motivation may have to come from other sources, both grimly familiar at this stage of an Ashes trip: pride in personal performance, and pride in the badge, which has become the tour mantra.
Of the eight series defeats England have suffered here since 1990-91, a margin of 3-1 would equal their least-heaviest. That is the barrel whose bottom they are now scraping.
Veterans Jimmy Anderson and Stuart Broad are unlikely to be touring Australia in four years
The team's managing dirctor Ashley Giles is also in the firing line after this horror tour
For many of the squad, Ashes tours may soon be a thing of the past. When England return in four years' time, only an optimist would expect James Anderson, Stuart Broad, Mark Wood, Chris Woakes, Dawid Malan, Jonny Bairstow or Jack Leach to be in the party.
Jos Buttler has already flown home with a broken finger, while Root and Ben Stokes will be both be 34 in 2025-26.
Root's defence of Silverwood was spirited but not entirely unequivocal. When he was asked whether his team needed to win for the benefit of his coach's career prospects, he shouldered arms.
'I think we just need to win this week anyway, to instil a bit of pride back in from the way the first three games unfolded,' he said. 'We
