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The England head coach detested the term Bazball the moment it emerged, considering it overly simplistic and maybe anticipating how it might be weaponised down the line. Right now, down 2-0 in an Test series in Australia that began with high hopes, it has become the butt of mockery from Australia.

However McCullum has not helped himself either. After the crushing loss at the Gabba, his insistence that, if anything, England were 'over-prepared' prior to the pink-ball match was akin to trying to put out a bin fire with gasoline. It could become his epitaph as England head coach if results do not take an upturn.

On one level, one must admire his commitment to the bit. While McCullum claims to block out outside criticism, he will have been all too aware of an England team increasingly characterised as freewheeling and lacking preparation.

The reality, as always, is more nuanced. England play as much golf during their scheduled breaks as their rivals and they practice equally hard. Prior to the Gabba Test, they did more, logging five days compared to Australia's three, given their limited experience to the pink Kookaburra ball and the different lighting conditions.

The Debate of Preparation and Training

The coach's point about being "over-prepared" was that those five extra days were his call – the moment he blinked in his conviction that less is more. It suggested a significant amount of mental energy was used up before they even took the field in the intensity of Australia's stronghold. And though nets are a opportunity to refine skills, they can also become a comfort zone; zero consequence activity that simply maintains the reactions quick.

Fixtures are tight such that warm-up matches against state sides were unavailable (and uncertain value, as shown by England playing three before the 5-0 series loss in 2013-14). What is harder to square is the disregard of county championship cricket as a valuable experience in general, evidenced by Jacob Bethell's unproductive season.

Match Deficiencies and Philosophical Stagnation

Only playing hardens cricketers for the various scenarios they encounter, and it is here where England have thus far been found lacking. It is not only with the batting – as poor as some of the decision-making has been – but an bowling attack that seems without a spearhead. No bowler has demonstrated the patience or discipline that the exceptional Mitchell Starc and his support cast have delivered.

The coach's free-spirit approach was freeing during its first 12 months, an effective, apt remedy to eradicate the torpor that came before. The frustration now comes in how it has apparently not evolved past that initial phase – the lack of an upgrade to the original software that has seen form taper off to an even record from their last 30 Tests.

Player Focus and Team Dilemmas

One such player is Jamie Smith, a gifted player, no question, but one who is being constantly tested on each side of the bat and has dropped two crucial opportunities with the gloves. The situation is not aided when your counterpart, the Australian keeper, has just delivered a masterful performance.

Based on McCullum's words in the aftermath, England look likely to keep the faith with Smith in Adelaide. The hope – similar to the broader situation – is that a return to a traditional match environment triggers his best, with Perth's bouncy pitch and the unfamiliar day-night format now out of the way.

The alternative is to enact the plan stumbled across during the victorious series in New Zealand 12 months ago by shifting the batsman down to his more natural home as a active middle order player, giving him the wicketkeeping duties, and picking a fresh face at first drop. A young contender made some runs for the Lions recently, or maybe Will Jacks could fulfil a similar role to Moeen Ali in 2023.

Ultimately, these changes is ideal, however Australia's superior basics having destroyed pre-series optimism and pushed the broader philosophy into the spotlight.