Objects have no world scale?

When I attempt to switch to world coordinates for scaling an object I simply can not. I can rotate and transform using world and local (object) but can only scale an object using its local coordinates. So I have two questions.

  • Is there something I’m missing that will allow me to rotate an object around its local coordinates and then use the world coordinates to effect scale?

  • If no, how can I apply scale (in engine) as a sort of reset of rotation.

My initial thoughts were I could use local rotation to rotate a sphere, then use world coordinates to scale it along the world Z axis. Basically trying to squish the sphere but always only on the world z axis. Also think of it like a tire deformation. (I have looked up tire deformation and all the options I’ve found introduce major artifacts or use material settings.) I am unable to use material based deformation for this specific task.