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Brendon McCullum detested the term Bazball since it was coined, considering it overly simplistic and perhaps anticipating how it might be used as a weapon down the line. Currently, down 2-0 in an away Ashes series that started with high hopes, it has become the butt of Australian jokes.

However the coach has not helped himself either. After the gut-wrenching loss at the Gabba, his claim that, if there was an issue, England were 'over-prepared' before the pink-ball match was akin to attempting to extinguish a bin fire with petrol. It could become his epitaph as national coach if results do not improve.

On one level, you almost have to admire his commitment to the bit. As much as McCullum says he ignore external noise, he must have been all too 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 rivals and they train just as much. Prior to the Gabba Test, they trained for longer, completing five days compared to Australia's three, due to their limited experience to the pink ball and the changes in lighting conditions.

The Question of Preparation and Training

The coach's point about being "excessively ready" was that those additional training days were his call – the instance he wavered in his belief that minimal preparation is best. It meant a significant amount of mental energy was used up before they even took the field in the intensity of Australia's stronghold. While net practice are a chance to refine skills, they can also become a safety blanket; zero consequence activity that simply maintains the reflexes sharp.

Schedules are tight such that warm-up matches against state sides were unavailable (with no guarantee, when you consider England playing three before the 5-0 series loss in 2013-14). What is harder to square is the dismissal of county championship cricket as a valuable experience more broadly, evidenced by Jacob Bethell's unproductive season.

Match Shortcomings and Philosophical Stagnation

Match practice alone hardens cricketers for the many situations they walk out to face, and it is in this area where England have thus far been found lacking. The issue is not just with the batting – harrowing as some of the shot selection has been – but an attack that seems leaderless. None has demonstrated the persistence or control that the exceptional Australian paceman and his support cast have delivered.

McCullum's unconventional approach was freeing during its first 12 months, an effective, well diagnosed solution to shake off the lethargy that came before. The frustration now comes in how it has apparently failed to move beyond that point – the lack of an second phase to the initial philosophy that has seen form decline to an even record from their last 30 Tests.

Player Spotlight and Selection Dilemmas

One such player is the wicketkeeper-batter, a gifted player, undoubtedly, but one who is being mercilessly targeted on both edges and missed two crucial opportunities with the gloves. It probably does not help when your counterpart, the Australian keeper, has just produced a masterful display.

Based on McCullum's comments after the match, England look likely to persist 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 series win in New Zealand 12 months ago by moving Ollie Pope down to his more natural home as a busy middle order player, giving him the wicketkeeping duties, and picking a fresh face at first drop. Bethell scored runs for the Lions recently, or perhaps an all-rounder could perform a similar role to Moeen Ali in 2023.

Ultimately, none of this is perfect, however Australia's better fundamentals having destroyed pre-series optimism and forced the team's entire approach into the spotlight.