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The England head coach detested the label Bazball the moment it emerged, considering it reductive and maybe foreseeing how it could be weaponised down the line. Currently, down 2-0 in an Test series in Australia that started with great expectations, it has become the butt of mockery from Australia.

However the coach has contributed to the problem either. After the crushing loss at the Gabba, his insistence that, if there was an issue, England were 'over-prepared' prior to the pink-ball match was like attempting to extinguish a bin fire with petrol. It could become his epitaph as national coach if performances do not improve.

In a way, one must admire his commitment to the bit. While he says he block out external noise, he will have been all too aware of an England team increasingly characterised as freewheeling and underprepared.

The reality, as ever, 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 Debate of Preparation and Practice

McCullum's point about being "over-prepared" was that those five extra days were his decision – the instance he blinked in his belief that less is more. It meant a significant amount of focus was used up before they even stepped out in the cauldron of Australia's fortress. While net practice are a chance to iron out skills, they can also become a safety blanket; low-pressure activity that simply maintains the reflexes sharp.

Fixtures are tight such that warm-up matches against state sides were unavailable (and no guarantee, when you consider 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 worthwhile exercise in general, evidenced by a young player's unproductive season.

Match Shortcomings and Strategic Stagnation

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 batting – harrowing as some of the decision-making has been – but an bowling attack that seems leaderless. None has shown the patience or discipline that the exceptional Mitchell Starc and his teammates have delivered.

The coach's free-spirit outlook was liberating during its initial year, an effective, apt solution to shake off the lethargy that preceded it. The disappointment now stems from how it has seemingly not evolved past that initial phase – the lack of an second phase to the initial philosophy that has seen form taper off to an even record from their last 30 Tests.

Player Spotlight and Selection Dilemmas

One such player is Jamie Smith, a talent, no question, but one who is being mercilessly targeted on both edges and missed two crucial opportunities as wicketkeeper. The situation is not aided when your counterpart, Alex Carey, has just produced a virtuoso display.

Going by the coach's comments in the aftermath, England look likely to keep the faith with Smith in Adelaide. The expectation – as is the case – is that a switch to a traditional match environment unleashes his top form, with Perth's bouncy pitch and the unfamiliar day-night format now out of the way.

Another option is to enact the plan stumbled across during the victorious series in New Zealand 12 months ago by moving the batsman down to his more natural home as a active middle order player, giving him the gloves, and selecting a new No 3. Bethell scored runs for the Lions recently, or maybe Will Jacks could perform a similar role to Moeen Ali in 2023.

In the end, these changes is perfect, however Australia's superior basics having shattered pre-series optimism and pushed the broader philosophy into the spotlight.