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

However the coach has not helped himself either. Following the gut-wrenching loss at the Gabba, his insistence that, if anything, England were 'too prepared' before the pink-ball match was like attempting to extinguish a bin fire with petrol. It risks becoming his lasting legacy as national coach if results do not improve.

On one level, one must admire his commitment to the bit. While McCullum says he block out external noise, he must have been all too aware of an England team increasingly characterised as freewheeling and underprepared.

The truth, as always, is not so simple. England play as much golf during their necessary down time as their rivals and they train just as much. Prior to the Gabba Test, they trained for longer, logging five days compared to Australia's three, given their lack of exposure to the pink Kookaburra ball and the different seeing conditions.

The Debate of Preparation and Practice

McCullum's point about being "excessively ready" was that those additional training days were his decision – the moment he blinked in his belief that minimal preparation is best. It meant a Test match's worth of mental energy was expended before they even stepped out in the cauldron of Australia's fortress. And though net practice are a chance to refine skills, they can also become a comfort zone; zero consequence activity that simply maintains the reactions quick.

Schedules are tight such that warm-up matches against state sides were unavailable (with no guarantee, as shown by England having played three before the 5-0 series loss in 2013-14). What is harder to square is the disregard of county championship cricket as a valuable experience in general, evidenced by a young player's wasted summer.

On-Field Deficiencies and Strategic Stagnation

Match practice alone hardens cricketers for the many situations they walk out to face, and it is in this area where England have thus far been found lacking. The issue is not just with the batting – as poor as some of the decision-making has been – but an bowling attack that seems leaderless. None has demonstrated the patience or control that the exceptional Australian paceman and his support cast have displayed.

The coach's unconventional approach was freeing during its first 12 months, an excellent, apt remedy to eradicate the lethargy that preceded it. The frustration now comes in how it has seemingly failed to move beyond that point – an absence of an second phase to the original software that has seen results decline to an even record from their last 30 Tests.

Squad Spotlight and Team Decisions

Among them is Jamie Smith, a gifted player, no question, but one who is being mercilessly targeted on both edges and missed two crucial opportunities with the gloves. The situation is not aided when your opposite number, the Australian keeper, has just produced a masterful performance.

Based on the coach's comments in the aftermath, England look likely to persist with Smith in Adelaide. The expectation – similar to the broader situation – is that a return to a traditional Test setting triggers his top form, with Perth's bouncy pitch and the unfamiliar floodlit Test now in the past.

The alternative is to implement the plan stumbled across during the series win in New Zealand 12 months ago by moving the batsman down to his preferred position as a active No. 5 or 6, giving him the gloves, and picking a new No 3. A young contender made some runs for the Lions recently, or maybe Will Jacks could fulfil a comparable function to Moeen Ali in 2023.

Ultimately, none of this is ideal, with Australia's better fundamentals having shattered expectations and forced the team's entire approach into the spotlight.