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Brendon McCullum loathed the moniker Bazball from its inception, viewing it as overly simplistic and maybe foreseeing how it could be used as a weapon in the future. Currently, down 2-0 in an away Ashes series that started with great expectations, it has turned into the subject of Australian jokes.

However the coach has not helped himself either. After the gut-wrenching defeat at the Gabba, his insistence that, if anything, England were 'too prepared' prior to the pink-ball match was like attempting to extinguish a rubbish fire with petrol. It could become his epitaph as England head coach if performances do not take an upturn.

In a way, you almost have to admire his commitment to the bit. As much as McCullum says he ignore external noise, he must have been acutely aware of an England team increasingly characterised as carefree and lacking preparation.

The reality, as ever, is more nuanced. England enjoy golf just as much during their necessary down time as their rivals and they train just as much. Before 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 Readiness and Practice

McCullum's point about being "over-prepared" was that those additional training days were his call – the moment he wavered in his belief that minimal preparation is best. It suggested a significant amount of mental energy was used up before they even stepped out in the intensity of Australia's fortress. While nets are a opportunity to refine skills, they can also become a safety blanket; low-pressure work that simply maintains the reflexes sharp.

Schedules are congested such that warm-up matches against state sides were not possible (with no guarantee, when you consider England playing three before the whitewash in 2013-14). What is harder to square is the dismissal of domestic red-ball cricket as a valuable experience more broadly, as shown by a young player's unproductive season.

On-Field Deficiencies and Philosophical Lack of Evolution

Match practice alone hardens cricketers for the various scenarios 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 bowling attack that seems leaderless. None has shown the persistence or control that the otherworldly Australian paceman and his support cast have delivered.

McCullum's unconventional outlook was freeing during its initial year, an excellent, well diagnosed remedy to shake off the torpor that came before. The frustration 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 results taper off to 14 wins and 14 losses from their most recent matches.

Squad Spotlight and Team Decisions

One such player is Jamie Smith, a gifted player, undoubtedly, but one who is being mercilessly targeted on each side of the bat and has dropped two key chances as wicketkeeper. It probably does not help when your counterpart, Alex Carey, has just produced a masterful display.

Going by McCullum's comments in the aftermath, England look likely to persist with Smith in Adelaide. The expectation – similar to the broader situation – is that a return to a traditional Test setting triggers his best, with Perth's bouncy pitch and the unusual day-night format now in the past.

Another option is to enact the plan discovered during the series win in New Zealand last year by moving Ollie Pope down to his more natural home as a active No. 5 or 6, giving him the wicketkeeping duties, and selecting a new No 3. A young contender made some runs for the Lions recently, or maybe an all-rounder could fulfil a comparable function to Moeen Ali in 2023.

Ultimately, none of this is perfect, with Australia's superior basics having destroyed pre-series optimism and pushed the team's entire approach into the harsh glare of scrutiny.