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Brendon McCullum despised the term Bazball since it was coined, deeming it overly simplistic and perhaps foreseeing how it might be used as a weapon down the line. Right now, trailing 2-0 in an away Ashes series that began with great expectations, it has turned into the subject of Australian jokes.

However McCullum has not helped himself either. After the crushing defeat at the Gabba, his claim that, if anything, England were 'over-prepared' prior to the day-night Test was like trying to put out a bin fire with petrol. It risks becoming his epitaph as England head coach if results do not take an upturn.

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

The truth, as always, is not so simple. England enjoy golf just as much during their necessary down time as their rivals and they train just as much. Prior to the Gabba Test, they did more, logging five days compared to Australia's three, due to their limited experience to the pink ball and the changes in seeing conditions.

The Debate of Preparation and Training

The coach's point about being "over-prepared" was that those additional training days were his call – the instance he blinked in his conviction that less is more. It suggested a Test match's worth of focus was expended before they even took the field in the intensity of Australia's stronghold. While net practice are a opportunity to iron out skills, they can also become a safety blanket; low-pressure activity that mainly maintains the reactions quick.

Fixtures are tight such that warm-up matches against state sides were not possible (with uncertain value, as shown by England playing three before the whitewash in 2013-14). More difficult to justify is the dismissal of domestic red-ball cricket as a worthwhile exercise in general, as shown by a young player's wasted summer.

On-Field Shortcomings and Philosophical Stagnation

Match practice alone prepares cricketers for the many situations they encounter, and it is here where England have thus far been found lacking. The issue is not just with the bat – as poor as some of the shot selection has been – but an attack that seems leaderless. None has demonstrated the patience or control that the otherworldly Mitchell Starc and his support cast have displayed.

The coach's unconventional approach was liberating during its first 12 months, an excellent, well diagnosed remedy to shake off the lethargy that preceded it. The frustration now comes in how it has apparently 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 last 30 Tests.

Squad Focus and Team Decisions

One such player is Jamie Smith, a gifted player, no question, but one who is being constantly tested on both edges and has dropped two crucial opportunities as wicketkeeper. 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 keep the faith with Smith in Adelaide. The expectation – similar to the broader situation – is that a switch to a traditional match environment unleashes his top form, with Perth's trampoline surface and the unusual floodlit Test now in the past.

The alternative is to enact the plan discovered during the victorious series in New Zealand last year by moving the batsman down to his more natural home as a active No. 5 or 6, giving him the wicketkeeping duties, and picking a fresh face at first drop. Bethell scored runs for the Lions over the weekend, or perhaps Will Jacks could fulfil a similar role to Moeen Ali in 2023.

Ultimately, these changes is ideal, however Australia's superior basics having destroyed pre-series optimism and forced the team's entire approach into the harsh glare of scrutiny.