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Brendon McCullum detested the label Bazball the moment it emerged, considering it reductive and perhaps anticipating how it might be used as a weapon down the line. Currently, trailing 2-0 in an Test series in Australia that started 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 'over-prepared' prior to the day-night Test was like attempting to extinguish a rubbish fire with petrol. It risks becoming his lasting legacy as England head coach if results do not improve.

In a way, one must admire his dedication to the philosophy. While McCullum claims to block out outside criticism, he will have been all too aware of an England team often described as freewheeling and underprepared.

The truth, as ever, is not so simple. England enjoy golf just as much during their scheduled breaks as their rivals and they train just as much. Prior to the Gabba Test, they did more, 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 Readiness and Practice

The coach's point about being "over-prepared" was that those five extra days were his call – the instance he wavered in his belief that less is more. It meant a significant amount of focus was used up before they even stepped out in the intensity of Australia's fortress. While nets are a opportunity to iron out skills, they can also become a safety blanket; low-pressure work that mainly keeps the reactions quick.

Fixtures are congested such that warm-up matches against state sides were not possible (with no guarantee, when you consider England having played three before the whitewash in 2013-14). What is harder to square is the dismissal of domestic red-ball cricket as a worthwhile exercise more broadly, as shown by Jacob Bethell's unproductive season.

Match Shortcomings and Philosophical Stagnation

Only playing prepares cricketers for the various scenarios they walk out to face, and it is in this area where England have thus far fallen well short. It is not only with the batting – harrowing as some of the shot selection has been – but an bowling attack that seems leaderless. None has shown the persistence or discipline that the otherworldly Australian paceman and his teammates have displayed.

The coach's unconventional outlook was liberating during its initial year, an effective, apt remedy to eradicate the torpor that came before. The frustration now stems from how it has apparently not evolved past that initial phase – an absence of an upgrade to the initial philosophy that has seen results decline to an even record from their last 30 Tests.

Squad Focus and Selection 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 has dropped two key chances as wicketkeeper. It probably does not help when your opposite number, Alex Carey, has just delivered a masterful display.

Based on McCullum's words in the aftermath, England look likely to keep the faith with Smith in Adelaide. The expectation – similar to the broader situation – is that a return to a traditional match environment triggers his top form, with Perth's bouncy pitch and the unfamiliar day-night format now in the past.

The alternative is to enact the plan stumbled across during the series win in New Zealand 12 months ago by shifting Ollie Pope down to his more natural home as a active No. 5 or 6, giving him the gloves, and picking 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.

In the end, none of this is ideal, with Australia's better fundamentals having shattered pre-series optimism and pushed the team's entire approach into the harsh glare of scrutiny.