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The England head coach detested the moniker Bazball from its inception, considering it overly simplistic and maybe anticipating 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 Australian jokes.

However the coach has not helped himself either. After the crushing defeat at the Gabba, his claim that, if anything, England were 'over-prepared' prior to the pink-ball match was akin to attempting to extinguish a rubbish fire with gasoline. It risks becoming his lasting legacy as England head coach if performances do not take an upturn.

On one level, one must admire his dedication to the philosophy. While McCullum claims to ignore external noise, he must have been acutely aware of an England team often described as carefree and lacking preparation.

The reality, as ever, is more nuanced. England play as much golf during their scheduled breaks as their rivals and they practice equally hard. Before the Gabba Test, they trained for longer, completing five days compared to Australia's three, given their lack of exposure to the pink ball and the changes in lighting conditions.

The Question of Preparation and Practice

The coach's point about being "over-prepared" was that those five extra days were his decision – the moment he blinked in his conviction that less is more. It meant a significant amount of mental energy was expended before they even stepped out in the intensity of Australia's fortress. And though nets are a opportunity to refine skills, they can also become a comfort zone; zero consequence activity that mainly keeps the reactions quick.

Fixtures are congested such that pre-series state games were unavailable (with no guarantee, as shown by England playing three before the 5-0 series loss in 2013-14). What is harder to square is the dismissal of county championship cricket as a worthwhile exercise more broadly, as shown by a young player's wasted summer.

Match Shortcomings and Strategic Stagnation

Match practice alone prepares cricketers for the various scenarios 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 – harrowing as some of the decision-making has been – but an bowling attack that seems without a spearhead. No bowler has demonstrated the patience or discipline that the exceptional Australian paceman and his teammates have displayed.

McCullum's unconventional approach was freeing during its initial year, an excellent, apt solution to shake off the torpor that preceded it. The disappointment now stems from how it has apparently not evolved past that point – the lack of an second phase to the original software that has seen results decline to an even record from their most recent matches.

Squad Spotlight and Team Dilemmas

One such player is Jamie Smith, a talent, no question, but one who is being mercilessly targeted on each side of the bat and missed two crucial opportunities with the gloves. The situation is not aided when your counterpart, Alex Carey, has just produced a masterful performance.

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

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, handing him the gloves, and selecting a fresh face at first drop. Bethell scored runs for the Lions over the weekend, or perhaps Will Jacks could fulfil a comparable function to the former spinner in 2023.

In the end, none of this is ideal, however Australia's superior basics having destroyed expectations and forced the broader philosophy into the spotlight.