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Brendon McCullum detested the label Bazball since it was coined, deeming it overly simplistic and perhaps foreseeing how it could be weaponised in the future. Right now, down 2-0 in an away Ashes series that began with great expectations, it has become the butt of Australian jokes.

However the coach has not helped himself either. After the gut-wrenching defeat at the Gabba, his insistence that, if there was an issue, England were 'too prepared' prior to the day-night Test was like trying to put out a bin fire with gasoline. It could become his epitaph as national coach if performances do not improve.

On one level, you almost have to admire his commitment to the bit. As much as McCullum claims to block out external noise, he will have been acutely aware of an England team often described as carefree and underprepared.

The reality, as always, is more nuanced. England enjoy golf just as much during their necessary down time as their opponents and they practice equally hard. Before the Gabba Test, they trained for longer, logging five days compared to Australia's three, due to their limited experience to the pink Kookaburra ball and the different seeing conditions.

The Debate of Readiness and Training

McCullum's point about being "excessively ready" was that those additional training days were his call – the instance he wavered in his conviction that minimal preparation is best. It meant a significant amount of focus was used up before they even stepped out in the intensity of Australia's stronghold. And though nets are a chance to iron out technique, they can also become a comfort zone; zero consequence work that simply keeps the reactions quick.

Fixtures are tight such that pre-series state games were not possible (and uncertain value, as shown by England playing three before the whitewash in 2013-14). What is harder to square is the disregard of domestic red-ball cricket as a worthwhile exercise more broadly, evidenced by Jacob Bethell's wasted summer.

Match Shortcomings and Strategic 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 bat – as poor as some of the decision-making has been – but an attack that seems without a spearhead. None has shown the patience or control that the otherworldly Mitchell Starc and his support cast have delivered.

McCullum's unconventional approach was liberating during its first 12 months, an effective, well diagnosed solution to shake off the torpor that came before. The frustration now comes in how it has seemingly not evolved past that initial phase – an absence 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 Selection Decisions

Among them is Jamie Smith, a gifted player, no question, but one who is being constantly tested on each side of the bat and missed two crucial opportunities as wicketkeeper. It probably does not help when your counterpart, the Australian keeper, has just delivered a masterful performance.

Based on the coach's words after the match, England look likely to persist with Smith in Adelaide. The expectation – as is the case – is that a return to a traditional Test setting triggers his best, with Perth's trampoline surface and the unfamiliar floodlit Test now out of the way.

Another option is to enact the plan discovered during the series win in New Zealand last year by moving the batsman down to his more natural home as a active middle order player, handing him the gloves, and selecting a new No 3. Bethell made some runs for the Lions over the weekend, or perhaps Will Jacks could perform a similar role to the former spinner in 2023.

Ultimately, these changes is perfect, however Australia's better fundamentals having destroyed expectations and pushed the broader philosophy into the spotlight.