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England face an uphill task to win the Second Test of the Ashes if history has any say on the matter. The tourists trail the series 1-0 after their defeat to Australia at the Optus Stadium in Perth last week.

Ben Stokes' team lost the opening match of the series by eight wickets, with the game completed within two days. England will now prepare to face Australia at The Gabba in the Second Test, where the odds are not in their favour.

Visiting teams historically do not have a good record of beating Australia in Brisbane, with England, in particular, finding it difficult to defeat the home side at the famous stadium.

In fact, no England team has won at The Gabba in an Ashes test since 1986, when Mike Gatting led the country to a famous win and a 2-1 series victory.

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Arguably, the closest an England team has come to claiming a famous victory in Brisbane in a test match was in 2010, when Sir Andrew Strauss led the team to a draw.

Australia went on an unbeaten run at the venue in test matches from 1988 up to 2020, when India emerged victorious. The home side have since lost two of their last four tests at The Gabba, which may offer some encouragement to England.

The Second Test will also be a day-night game, which will see the use of the pink ball as opposed to the standard red ball.

Joe Root was recently asked about the use of the pink ball in the Second test, where the England No.4 and former captain admitted it would not be his choice to make the change.

"It does add to things," Root told BBC Sport. "It's successful and popular here, and Australia have got a good record here as well. You can see why we're playing one of those games.

"Ultimately, you know from two years out it is going to be there. It's part and parcel of making sure you're ready for it.

"A series like this, does it need it? I don't think so, but it doesn't mean it shouldn't be here either."

England have an indifferent record in day-night tests, with just two wins from their seven in total. That record also includes three defeats in Australia, but Stokes and Co. will be hoping for a different outcome this time around.

Australia have an impressive record in day-night matches, winning 13 of their 14 across the globe. What will give England further encouragement, though, was their last day-night match which finished in a defeat to the West Indies last year, and was also held at The Gabba.

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