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Brendon McCullum detested the label Bazball since it was coined, viewing it as overly simplistic and maybe anticipating how it could be weaponised down the line. Currently, trailing 2-0 in an Test series in Australia that began with great expectations, it has become the butt of mockery from Australia.

But the coach has not helped himself either. Following the gut-wrenching loss at the Gabba, his insistence that, if anything, England were 'too prepared' prior to the pink-ball match was akin to trying to put out a bin fire with gasoline. It risks becoming his epitaph as England head coach if results do not improve.

In a way, one must admire his commitment to the bit. While he claims to ignore external noise, he will have been acutely aware of an England team increasingly characterised as carefree and underprepared.

The truth, as ever, is not so simple. England play as much golf during their scheduled breaks as their opponents and they train just as much. Prior to the Gabba Test, they did more, completing five days compared to Australia's three, due to their lack of exposure to the pink ball and the different seeing conditions.

The Question of Readiness and Training

The coach's point about being "over-prepared" was that those five extra days were his call – the moment he wavered in his belief that less is more. It suggested a significant amount of focus was used up before they even took the field in the cauldron of Australia's fortress. And though nets are a opportunity to refine skills, they can also become a comfort zone; zero consequence work that mainly keeps the reactions quick.

Schedules are tight such that pre-series state games were unavailable (with no guarantee, as shown by England having played three before the 5-0 series loss in 2013-14). More difficult to justify is the disregard of domestic red-ball cricket as a worthwhile exercise more broadly, as shown by Jacob Bethell's unproductive season.

On-Field Deficiencies and Strategic Stagnation

Match practice alone hardens cricketers for the many situations they walk out to face, and it is here where England have so far fallen well short. The issue is not just with the batting – harrowing as some of the shot selection has been – but an bowling attack that seems without a spearhead. No bowler has shown the persistence or discipline that the exceptional Mitchell Starc and his support cast have displayed.

McCullum's unconventional approach was liberating during its initial year, an excellent, apt remedy to shake off the torpor that preceded it. The frustration now comes in how it has seemingly not evolved past that point – the lack of an second phase to the original software that has seen form taper off to an even record from their last 30 Tests.

Squad Focus and Selection Decisions

Among them is the wicketkeeper-batter, a gifted player, no question, but one who is being mercilessly targeted on both edges and has dropped two key chances as wicketkeeper. It probably does not help when your opposite number, the Australian keeper, has just produced a masterful performance.

Going by McCullum's words in the aftermath, England look likely to persist with Smith in Adelaide. The hope – similar to the broader situation – is that a switch to a more familiar Test setting unleashes his best, with Perth's trampoline surface and the unfamiliar day-night format now out of the way.

Another option is to implement the plan discovered during the victorious series in New Zealand last year by shifting the batsman down to his more natural home as a busy No. 5 or 6, handing him the wicketkeeping duties, and picking a fresh face at first drop. Bethell scored runs for the Lions recently, or maybe Will Jacks could perform a similar role to Moeen Ali in 2023.

In the end, these changes is ideal, however Australia's superior basics having shattered pre-series optimism and pushed the broader philosophy into the harsh glare of scrutiny.