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The England head coach loathed the term Bazball the moment it emerged, deeming it overly simplistic and maybe foreseeing how it could be weaponised down the line. Currently, down 2-0 in an away Ashes series that started with great expectations, it has become the butt of Australian jokes.

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

On one level, you almost have to admire his dedication to the philosophy. As much as McCullum says he ignore outside criticism, he must have been acutely aware of an England team increasingly characterised as freewheeling and lacking preparation.

The reality, as always, is not so simple. England play as much golf during their scheduled breaks as their rivals and they train just as much. Before the Gabba Test, they trained for longer, logging five days to Australia's three, given their lack of exposure to the pink ball and the changes in seeing conditions.

The Question of Readiness and Training

The coach's point about being "excessively ready" was that those additional training days were his decision – the moment he blinked in his belief that less is more. It suggested a significant amount of mental energy was used up before they even took the field in the cauldron of Australia's fortress. While nets are a chance to refine skills, they can also become a safety blanket; low-pressure activity that simply keeps the reactions quick.

Fixtures are congested such that warm-up matches against state sides were not possible (and uncertain value, when you consider England playing three before the 5-0 series loss in 2013-14). What is harder to square is the dismissal of county championship cricket as a worthwhile exercise more broadly, evidenced by Jacob Bethell's unproductive season.

Match Deficiencies and Philosophical Stagnation

Match practice alone hardens cricketers for the many situations they walk out to face, and it is here where England have thus far fallen well short. The issue is not just with the batting – harrowing as some of the decision-making has been – but an attack that seems without a spearhead. No bowler has demonstrated the patience or control that the exceptional Mitchell Starc and his teammates have delivered.

McCullum's free-spirit outlook was freeing during its first 12 months, an effective, well diagnosed remedy to shake off the lethargy that came before. The frustration now comes in how it has seemingly failed to move beyond that initial phase – the lack of an second phase to the original software that has seen results taper off to an even record from their last 30 Tests.

Player Spotlight and Team Decisions

One such player is Jamie Smith, a talent, undoubtedly, but one who is being mercilessly targeted on each side of the bat and missed two key chances with the gloves. The situation is not aided when your counterpart, the Australian keeper, has just delivered a masterful performance.

Going by McCullum's words after the match, England look likely to keep the faith with Smith in Adelaide. The expectation – similar to the broader situation – is that a return to a more familiar match environment unleashes his best, with Perth's trampoline surface and the unusual day-night format now in the past.

The alternative is to implement 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 middle order player, handing him the wicketkeeping duties, and picking a fresh face at first drop. 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.

In the end, none of this is perfect, with Australia's better fundamentals having destroyed expectations and forced the team's entire approach into the harsh glare of scrutiny.