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Brendon McCullum loathed the label Bazball from its inception, deeming it overly simplistic and maybe anticipating how it could be used as a weapon down the line. Right now, down 2-0 in an away Ashes series that began with high hopes, it has turned into the subject of Australian jokes.

However 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' prior to the pink-ball match was akin to 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. As much as he claims to block out external noise, he must have been acutely aware of an England team increasingly characterised as carefree and underprepared.

The reality, as ever, is more nuanced. England enjoy golf just as much during their necessary down time as their opponents and they practice equally hard. Before the Gabba Test, they trained for longer, completing five days to Australia's three, given their limited experience to the pink ball and the different lighting conditions.

The Debate of Readiness and Training

The coach's point about being "over-prepared" was that those five extra days were his call – the instance he blinked in his belief that less is more. It suggested a significant amount of focus was used up before they even took the field in the intensity of Australia's fortress. And though net practice are a opportunity to iron out technique, they can also become a comfort zone; low-pressure activity that mainly keeps the reflexes sharp.

Fixtures are tight such that pre-series state games were not possible (with uncertain value, when you consider England having played three before the whitewash in 2013-14). More difficult to justify is the dismissal of county championship cricket as a valuable experience more broadly, as shown by a young player's unproductive season.

On-Field Shortcomings and Strategic Stagnation

Only playing prepares cricketers for the many situations they walk out to face, and it is here 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 attack that seems without a spearhead. None has demonstrated the patience or discipline that the otherworldly Australian paceman and his teammates have delivered.

The coach's unconventional outlook was freeing during its initial year, an effective, apt solution to eradicate the lethargy that preceded it. The disappointment now stems from how it has seemingly not evolved past that initial phase – the lack of an second phase to the original software that has seen form taper off to an even record from their last 30 Tests.

Player Focus and Selection Dilemmas

Among them is Jamie Smith, a gifted player, undoubtedly, but one who is being mercilessly targeted on both edges and missed two key chances with the gloves. The situation is not aided when your opposite number, Alex Carey, has just delivered a virtuoso performance.

Going by McCullum's words after the match, England look likely to persist with Smith in Adelaide. The hope – as is the case – is that a switch to a traditional match environment triggers his best, with Perth's bouncy pitch and the unusual floodlit Test now in the past.

The alternative is to enact the plan discovered during the victorious series in New Zealand 12 months ago by shifting the batsman down to his more natural home as a busy No. 5 or 6, handing him the wicketkeeping duties, and picking a fresh face at first drop. Bethell scored runs for the Lions over the weekend, or maybe an all-rounder could perform a comparable function to Moeen Ali in 2023.

In the end, none of this is perfect, with Australia's better fundamentals having destroyed expectations and forced the broader philosophy into the harsh glare of scrutiny.