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The England head coach detested the moniker Bazball from its inception, viewing it as overly simplistic and maybe foreseeing how it might be weaponised down the line. Right now, trailing 2-0 in an Test series in Australia that started with great expectations, it has turned into the subject of Australian jokes.

However McCullum has not helped himself either. Following the crushing defeat at the Gabba, his claim that, if anything, England were 'over-prepared' before the pink-ball match was like attempting to extinguish a bin fire with petrol. It risks becoming his lasting legacy as England head coach if results do not take an upturn.

In a way, you almost have to admire his commitment to the bit. While he says he block out outside criticism, he must have been all too aware of an England team increasingly characterised as carefree and underprepared.

The truth, 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. Before the Gabba Test, they trained for longer, logging five days to Australia's three, given their lack of exposure to the pink Kookaburra ball and the changes in lighting conditions.

The Question of Preparation and Practice

The coach's point about being "over-prepared" was that those additional training days were his call – the moment he wavered in his conviction that minimal preparation is best. It meant a significant amount of focus was expended before they even took the field in the intensity of Australia's stronghold. And though nets are a opportunity to refine skills, they can also become a safety blanket; zero consequence activity that mainly maintains the reactions quick.

Fixtures are tight such that warm-up matches against state sides were not possible (with 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 county championship cricket as a worthwhile exercise in general, as shown by a young player's unproductive season.

Match Shortcomings and Strategic Lack of Evolution

Only playing 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 shot selection has been – but an attack that seems without a spearhead. None has demonstrated the patience or control that the exceptional Mitchell Starc and his teammates have displayed.

The coach's free-spirit outlook was liberating during its initial year, an excellent, well diagnosed solution to eradicate the torpor that preceded it. The frustration now comes in how it has seemingly failed to move beyond that point – an absence of an upgrade to the initial philosophy that has seen results decline to 14 wins and 14 losses from their last 30 Tests.

Squad Focus and Team Dilemmas

One such player is the wicketkeeper-batter, a talent, undoubtedly, but one who is being constantly tested on both edges and has dropped two key chances as wicketkeeper. It probably does not help when your opposite number, Alex Carey, has just produced a virtuoso display.

Going by McCullum's words 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 triggers his top form, with Perth's trampoline surface and the unusual day-night format now out of the way.

Another option is to implement the plan stumbled across during the series win in New Zealand 12 months ago by shifting Ollie Pope down to his preferred position as a busy middle order player, giving him the gloves, and selecting a new No 3. A young contender made some runs for the Lions over the weekend, or perhaps Will Jacks could perform a comparable function to Moeen Ali in 2023.

Ultimately, these changes is ideal, with Australia's better fundamentals having shattered pre-series optimism and forced the team's entire approach into the spotlight.