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The England head coach detested the label Bazball since it was coined, considering it reductive and perhaps anticipating how it might be used as a weapon in the future. Currently, down 2-0 in an away Ashes series that began with great expectations, it has turned into the subject of mockery from Australia.

But McCullum has not helped himself either. After the gut-wrenching defeat at the Gabba, his claim that, if there was an issue, England were 'over-prepared' before the pink-ball match was like trying to put out a rubbish fire with petrol. It could become his lasting legacy as England head coach if results do not take an upturn.

In a way, one must admire his dedication to the philosophy. As much as he says he block out outside criticism, he must have been all too aware of an England team increasingly characterised as carefree and underprepared.

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

The Question of Readiness and Practice

The coach's point about being "over-prepared" was that those five extra days were his call – the instance he wavered in his conviction that minimal preparation is best. It suggested a Test match's worth of focus was expended before they even stepped out in the cauldron of Australia's stronghold. And though nets are a chance to refine technique, they can also become a safety blanket; zero consequence activity that simply maintains the reactions quick.

Schedules are congested such that warm-up matches against state sides were not possible (with no guarantee, when you consider England having played three before the 5-0 series loss in 2013-14). More difficult to justify is the disregard of domestic red-ball cricket as a worthwhile exercise more broadly, as shown by a young player's unproductive season.

On-Field Deficiencies and Philosophical Lack of Evolution

Only playing hardens cricketers for the many situations they walk out to face, and it is here where England have so 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 shown the patience or discipline that the otherworldly Australian paceman and his support cast have delivered.

The coach's free-spirit approach was liberating during its first 12 months, an excellent, well diagnosed remedy to eradicate the lethargy that came before. The disappointment now stems from how it has seemingly not evolved past that point – the lack of an second phase to the original software that has seen form decline to an even record from their last 30 Tests.

Player Spotlight and Team Dilemmas

One such player is the wicketkeeper-batter, a gifted player, no question, but one who is being mercilessly targeted on each side of the bat and missed two key chances as wicketkeeper. It probably does not help when your opposite number, Alex Carey, has just delivered a masterful display.

Based on McCullum's comments after the match, England appear set to persist with Smith in Adelaide. The expectation – as is the case – is that a return to a more familiar Test setting triggers his best, with Perth's trampoline surface and the unfamiliar floodlit Test 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 moving the batsman down to his preferred position as a active middle order player, handing him the wicketkeeping duties, and selecting a fresh face at first drop. A young contender made some runs for the Lions over the weekend, or perhaps Will Jacks could fulfil a comparable function to the former spinner in 2023.

Ultimately, these changes is ideal, however Australia's superior basics having destroyed expectations and forced the team's entire approach into the harsh glare of scrutiny.