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The England head coach loathed the label Bazball the moment it emerged, deeming it reductive and perhaps anticipating how it might be weaponised down the line. Currently, down 2-0 in an Test series in Australia that began with high hopes, it has turned into the subject of Australian jokes.

However the coach has contributed to the problem either. After the gut-wrenching defeat at the Gabba, his claim that, if there was an issue, England were 'too prepared' before the day-night Test was akin to trying to put out a rubbish fire with gasoline. It risks becoming his epitaph as national coach if results do not take an upturn.

In a way, one must admire his dedication to the philosophy. As much as McCullum claims to block out external noise, he will have been acutely aware of an England team increasingly characterised as freewheeling and underprepared.

The truth, as always, is more nuanced. England play as much golf during their scheduled breaks as their opponents and they practice equally hard. Prior to the Gabba Test, they trained for longer, logging five days to Australia's three, given their lack of exposure to the pink ball and the different seeing conditions.

The Debate of Readiness and Practice

McCullum's point about being "over-prepared" was that those five extra days were his call – the instance he blinked in his conviction that minimal preparation is best. It meant a significant amount of mental energy was used up before they even took the field in the cauldron of Australia's stronghold. While net practice are a opportunity to refine skills, they can also become a comfort zone; zero consequence work that mainly maintains the reflexes sharp.

Fixtures are tight such that warm-up matches against state sides were unavailable (and uncertain value, when you consider England having played three before the whitewash in 2013-14). What is harder to square is the dismissal of county championship cricket as a worthwhile exercise more broadly, as shown by a young player's unproductive season.

Match Shortcomings and Strategic Lack of Evolution

Match practice alone prepares cricketers for the many situations they encounter, and it is in this area where England have thus far been found lacking. It is not only with the bat – as poor as some of the shot selection has been – but an bowling attack that seems without a spearhead. None has demonstrated the patience or discipline that the exceptional Australian paceman and his support cast have displayed.

The coach's unconventional approach was freeing during its initial year, an excellent, well diagnosed solution to eradicate the lethargy that came before. The disappointment now comes in how it has apparently not evolved past that point – the lack of an second phase to the initial philosophy that has seen form taper off to an even record from their most recent matches.

Player Spotlight and Team Dilemmas

One such player is the wicketkeeper-batter, a gifted player, no question, but one who is being constantly tested on both edges and has dropped two key chances as wicketkeeper. The situation is not aided when your counterpart, the Australian keeper, has just produced a masterful display.

Going by McCullum's comments after the match, England appear set to persist with Smith in Adelaide. The hope – as is the case – is that a switch to a more familiar match environment unleashes his top form, with Perth's bouncy pitch and the unusual floodlit Test now in the past.

Another option is to enact the plan discovered during the victorious series in New Zealand last year by moving the batsman down to his more natural home as a active middle order player, handing him the wicketkeeping duties, and selecting a new No 3. Bethell made some runs for the Lions recently, or maybe Will Jacks could perform a similar role to the former spinner in 2023.

Ultimately, these changes is perfect, however Australia's better fundamentals having shattered pre-series optimism and forced the broader philosophy into the spotlight.