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The England head coach loathed the label Bazball the moment it emerged, deeming it reductive and maybe foreseeing how it might be used as a weapon down the line. Right now, down 2-0 in an Test series in Australia that began with great expectations, it has turned into the subject of mockery from Australia.

However the coach has contributed to the problem either. After the gut-wrenching loss at the Gabba, his insistence that, if anything, England were 'over-prepared' prior to the pink-ball match was like trying to put out a bin fire with petrol. It risks becoming his epitaph as national coach if results do not improve.

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

The reality, as always, is not so simple. 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 trained for longer, logging five days to Australia's three, given their limited experience to the pink ball and the different lighting conditions.

The Debate of Readiness and Training

The coach's point about being "excessively ready" was that those five extra days were his call – the instance he wavered in his belief 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 fortress. And though nets are a opportunity to refine skills, they can also become a comfort zone; low-pressure activity that simply maintains the reactions quick.

Fixtures are tight such that warm-up matches against state sides were not possible (and uncertain value, as shown by England having played three before the whitewash in 2013-14). What is harder to square is the disregard of county championship cricket as a worthwhile exercise more broadly, evidenced by a young player's unproductive season.

On-Field Deficiencies 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 – harrowing as some of the decision-making has been – but an bowling attack that seems leaderless. None has demonstrated the persistence or discipline that the exceptional Mitchell Starc and his support cast have displayed.

McCullum's unconventional approach was freeing during its initial year, an excellent, apt remedy to shake off the lethargy that preceded it. The frustration now comes in how it has seemingly failed to move beyond that point – the lack of an second phase to the original software that has seen form decline to 14 wins and 14 losses from their most recent matches.

Squad Focus and Team Dilemmas

One such player is Jamie Smith, a gifted player, undoubtedly, 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 opposite number, Alex Carey, has just produced a masterful performance.

Based on the coach's comments after the match, England appear set to persist with Smith in Adelaide. The hope – similar to the broader situation – is that a return to a more familiar Test setting triggers his best, with Perth's bouncy pitch and the unfamiliar floodlit Test now out of the way.

Another option is to implement the plan stumbled across during the victorious series in New Zealand 12 months ago by moving the batsman down to his more natural home as a busy No. 5 or 6, handing him the wicketkeeping duties, and selecting a fresh face at first drop. A young contender made some runs for the Lions recently, or maybe an all-rounder could fulfil a comparable function to the former spinner in 2023.

Ultimately, none of this is ideal, however Australia's better fundamentals having destroyed expectations and pushed the broader philosophy into the harsh glare of scrutiny.