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Brendon McCullum loathed the label Bazball the moment it emerged, considering it reductive and maybe foreseeing how it might be weaponised down the line. Right now, trailing 2-0 in an away Ashes series that started with great expectations, it has turned into the subject of Australian jokes.

However McCullum has not helped himself either. After the crushing loss at the Gabba, his insistence that, if anything, England were 'too prepared' prior to the day-night Test was akin to trying to put out a bin fire with gasoline. It could become his lasting legacy as England head coach if results do not improve.

In a way, one must admire his commitment to the bit. While McCullum claims to block out external noise, he must have been all too aware of an England team often described as freewheeling and lacking preparation.

The reality, as always, is not so simple. England play as much golf during their necessary down time as their rivals and they practice equally hard. Before the Gabba Test, they trained for longer, logging five days to Australia's three, given their limited experience to the pink Kookaburra ball and the changes in lighting conditions.

The Debate of Readiness and Practice

The coach's point about being "over-prepared" was that those additional training days were his call – the instance he wavered in his conviction that less is more. It suggested a significant amount of mental energy was expended before they even stepped out in the intensity of Australia's fortress. While net practice are a opportunity to refine skills, they can also become a comfort zone; zero consequence work that simply keeps the reactions quick.

Fixtures are tight such that warm-up matches against state sides were not possible (and no guarantee, when you consider England having played three before the 5-0 series loss in 2013-14). More difficult to justify is the dismissal of domestic red-ball cricket as a valuable experience in general, as shown by a young player's unproductive season.

Match Shortcomings and Strategic Lack of Evolution

Match practice alone hardens cricketers for the various scenarios they encounter, and it is here where England have so far fallen well short. The issue is not just with the bat – as poor as some of the shot selection has been – but an bowling attack that seems leaderless. No bowler has demonstrated the patience or control that the exceptional Mitchell Starc and his support cast have displayed.

McCullum's unconventional approach was freeing during its initial year, an excellent, well diagnosed solution to shake off the lethargy that came before. The disappointment now comes in how it has apparently failed to move beyond that point – an absence of an upgrade to the original software that has seen results decline to an even record from their last 30 Tests.

Player Focus and Team Decisions

Among them is the wicketkeeper-batter, a talent, no question, but one who is being mercilessly targeted on both edges and has dropped two key chances as wicketkeeper. The situation is not aided when your opposite number, the Australian keeper, has just produced a virtuoso display.

Going by the coach's comments in the aftermath, England appear set to keep the faith with Smith in Adelaide. The hope – similar to the broader situation – is that a return to a more familiar Test setting unleashes his best, with Perth's bouncy pitch and the unusual 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 Ollie Pope down to his more natural home as a busy middle order player, handing him the gloves, and selecting a new No 3. A young contender scored runs for the Lions recently, or perhaps Will Jacks could fulfil a similar role to Moeen Ali in 2023.

In the end, none of this is perfect, with Australia's superior basics having destroyed pre-series optimism and forced the broader philosophy into the harsh glare of scrutiny.