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Brendon McCullum detested the term Bazball since it was coined, viewing it as overly simplistic and maybe anticipating how it might be used as a weapon in the future. Currently, trailing 2-0 in an away Ashes series that began with great expectations, it has become the butt of Australian jokes.

But McCullum has not helped himself either. Following the crushing defeat at the Gabba, his insistence that, if anything, England were 'over-prepared' prior to the day-night Test was like trying to put out a rubbish fire with petrol. It risks becoming his epitaph as national coach if performances do not improve.

On one level, you almost have to admire his dedication to the philosophy. While he claims to block out outside criticism, he must have been acutely aware of an England team often described as freewheeling and underprepared.

The truth, as always, is not so simple. England enjoy golf just as much during their scheduled breaks as their rivals and they practice equally hard. Before the Gabba Test, they trained for longer, completing five days to Australia's three, due to their limited experience to the pink Kookaburra ball and the different seeing conditions.

The Question of Preparation and Practice

McCullum's point about being "over-prepared" was that those additional training days were his call – the instance he blinked in his belief that minimal preparation is best. It suggested a Test match's worth of mental energy was expended before they even stepped out in the cauldron of Australia's stronghold. And though nets are a chance to refine skills, they can also become a comfort zone; low-pressure activity that simply maintains the reflexes sharp.

Fixtures are tight such that warm-up matches against state sides were not possible (and no guarantee, as shown by England playing three before the whitewash in 2013-14). More difficult to justify is the dismissal of county championship cricket as a worthwhile exercise in general, as shown by Jacob Bethell's unproductive season.

Match Shortcomings and Strategic Lack of Evolution

Only playing hardens cricketers for the many situations they walk out to face, and it is in this area where England have thus far fallen well short. It is not only with the batting – harrowing as some of the shot selection has been – but an attack that seems without a spearhead. No bowler has demonstrated the patience or control that the otherworldly Australian paceman and his teammates have delivered.

McCullum's free-spirit approach was freeing during its initial year, an effective, well diagnosed solution to shake off the lethargy that preceded it. The disappointment now comes in how it has apparently not evolved past that point – the lack of an second phase to the original software that has seen results taper off to 14 wins and 14 losses from their most recent matches.

Squad Focus and Team Decisions

One such player is Jamie Smith, a talent, no question, but one who is being constantly tested on each side of the bat and has dropped two key chances with the gloves. The situation is not aided when your counterpart, Alex Carey, has just produced a virtuoso performance.

Based on McCullum's words after the match, England appear set to persist with Smith in Adelaide. The hope – similar to the broader situation – is that a return to a more familiar match environment triggers his best, with Perth's bouncy pitch and the unusual day-night format now in the past.

Another option is to implement the plan stumbled across during the victorious series in New Zealand last year by shifting Ollie Pope down to his preferred position as a busy No. 5 or 6, giving him the gloves, and selecting a new No 3. A young contender scored runs for the Lions recently, or perhaps an all-rounder could perform a comparable function to the former spinner in 2023.

In the end, none of this is ideal, with Australia's better fundamentals having destroyed expectations and forced the team's entire approach into the harsh glare of scrutiny.