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Brendon McCullum detested the moniker Bazball from its inception, deeming it overly simplistic and maybe foreseeing how it might be weaponised down the line. Currently, trailing 2-0 in an away Ashes series that started with high hopes, it has turned into the subject of mockery from Australia.

But the coach has contributed to the problem either. After the gut-wrenching loss at the Gabba, his claim that, if anything, England were 'over-prepared' before the pink-ball match was like attempting to extinguish a rubbish fire with gasoline. It risks becoming his epitaph as England head coach if performances do not take an upturn.

On one level, one must admire his commitment to the bit. As much as he claims to ignore external noise, he must have been all too aware of an England team often described as carefree and lacking preparation.

The truth, as ever, is not so simple. England play as much golf during their necessary down time as their opponents and they train just as much. Prior to the Gabba Test, they did more, logging five days to Australia's three, due to their lack of exposure to the pink ball and the changes in seeing conditions.

The Debate of Preparation and Practice

The coach's point about being "excessively ready" was that those additional training days were his decision – the instance he wavered in his belief that less is more. It meant a Test match's worth of focus was used up before they even took the field in the cauldron of Australia's fortress. While net practice are a chance to refine technique, they can also become a safety blanket; zero consequence activity that simply maintains the reflexes sharp.

Fixtures are tight such that pre-series state games were unavailable (and uncertain value, when you consider England having played three before the 5-0 series loss in 2013-14). What is harder to square is the disregard of domestic red-ball cricket as a valuable experience in general, as shown by Jacob Bethell's unproductive season.

On-Field Deficiencies and Strategic Stagnation

Match practice alone hardens cricketers for the various scenarios they encounter, and it is here where England have thus far been found lacking. The issue is not just with the batting – harrowing as some of the shot selection has been – but an attack that seems leaderless. No bowler has shown the patience or control that the otherworldly Australian paceman and his teammates have delivered.

McCullum's unconventional outlook was liberating during its first 12 months, an effective, well diagnosed solution to shake off the lethargy that came before. The frustration now stems from how it has apparently failed to move beyond that initial phase – the lack of an second phase to the initial philosophy that has seen form taper off to 14 wins and 14 losses from their last 30 Tests.

Player Spotlight and Team Dilemmas

One such player is the wicketkeeper-batter, a gifted player, no question, but one who is being mercilessly targeted on each side of the bat and missed two crucial opportunities as wicketkeeper. The situation is not aided when your opposite number, the Australian keeper, has just delivered a virtuoso display.

Going by McCullum's comments after the match, England look likely to keep the faith with Smith in Adelaide. The expectation – as is the case – is that a switch to a traditional Test setting triggers his best, with Perth's bouncy pitch and the unfamiliar floodlit Test now in the past.

Another option is to enact the plan discovered during the victorious series in New Zealand 12 months ago by shifting Ollie Pope down to his more natural home as a active middle order player, handing him the gloves, and picking a fresh face at first drop. A young contender scored runs for the Lions recently, or perhaps an all-rounder could perform a comparable function to the former spinner in 2023.

Ultimately, none of this is ideal, with Australia's superior basics having destroyed pre-series optimism and forced the broader philosophy into the spotlight.