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The England head coach despised the term Bazball the moment it emerged, considering it overly simplistic and perhaps foreseeing how it might be weaponised down the line. Currently, trailing 2-0 in an away Ashes series that started with great expectations, it has turned into the subject of Australian jokes.

But the coach has contributed to the problem either. After the gut-wrenching loss 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 rubbish fire with gasoline. It could become his epitaph as national coach if performances do not improve.

In a way, one must admire his dedication to the philosophy. While McCullum claims to block out outside criticism, he must have been all too aware of an England team often described as freewheeling and underprepared.

The reality, as ever, is more nuanced. England enjoy golf just as much during their necessary down time as their opponents and they train just as much. Prior to the Gabba Test, they did more, completing five days to Australia's three, given their lack of exposure to the pink Kookaburra ball and the changes in seeing conditions.

The Debate of Preparation and Training

The coach's point about being "over-prepared" was that those five extra days were his decision – the moment he wavered in his belief that minimal preparation is best. It meant a Test match's worth of mental energy was used up before they even took the field in the intensity of Australia's fortress. While net practice are a chance to iron out skills, they can also become a safety blanket; zero consequence work that mainly keeps the reactions quick.

Fixtures are tight such that warm-up matches against state sides were unavailable (and no guarantee, as shown by England having played three before the 5-0 series loss in 2013-14). More difficult to justify is the dismissal of county championship cricket as a worthwhile exercise more broadly, evidenced by a young player's wasted summer.

On-Field Shortcomings and Strategic Stagnation

Only playing prepares cricketers for the many situations they encounter, and it is in this area where England have so far been found lacking. The issue is not just with the bat – harrowing as some of the shot selection has been – but an attack that seems without a spearhead. No bowler has demonstrated the patience or control that the otherworldly Mitchell Starc and his support cast have delivered.

The coach's free-spirit approach was liberating during its initial year, an effective, apt remedy to eradicate the lethargy that came before. The disappointment now comes in how it has apparently not evolved past that point – an absence of an second phase to the original software that has seen form taper off to an even record from their last 30 Tests.

Squad Spotlight and Selection Dilemmas

Among them is the wicketkeeper-batter, a talent, undoubtedly, but one who is being mercilessly targeted on both edges and missed two key chances with the gloves. The situation is not aided when your opposite number, Alex Carey, has just delivered a virtuoso performance.

Going by McCullum's words after the match, England look likely to persist with Smith in Adelaide. The expectation – similar to the broader situation – is that a return to a more familiar Test setting triggers his top form, with Perth's trampoline surface and the unusual floodlit Test now out of the way.

The alternative is to enact the plan stumbled across during the victorious series in New Zealand 12 months ago by shifting the batsman down to his preferred position as a active No. 5 or 6, giving him the gloves, and selecting a new No 3. A young contender scored runs for the Lions over the weekend, or maybe Will Jacks could perform a similar role to the former spinner in 2023.

Ultimately, none of this is perfect, however Australia's superior basics having destroyed expectations and forced the broader philosophy into the spotlight.