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Brendon McCullum detested the moniker Bazball from its inception, considering it reductive and perhaps foreseeing how it could be used as a weapon in the future. Currently, down 2-0 in an Test series in Australia that started with high hopes, it has turned into the subject of Australian jokes.

But McCullum has not helped himself either. After the gut-wrenching defeat at the Gabba, his insistence that, if anything, England were 'over-prepared' before the pink-ball match was like trying to put out a bin fire with petrol. 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. While McCullum claims to block out external noise, he will have been all too aware of an England team increasingly characterised as freewheeling and underprepared.

The reality, as ever, is not so simple. England play as much golf during their scheduled breaks as their opponents and they practice equally hard. Before the Gabba Test, they did more, completing five days compared to Australia's three, due to their limited experience to the pink Kookaburra 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 call – the moment he blinked in his belief that minimal preparation is best. It suggested a significant amount of focus was expended before they even took the field in the cauldron of Australia's stronghold. And though net practice are a opportunity to iron out skills, they can also become a comfort zone; low-pressure activity that simply keeps the reflexes sharp.

Fixtures are tight such that warm-up matches against state sides were not possible (and no guarantee, when you consider England having played three before the 5-0 series loss in 2013-14). More difficult to justify is the dismissal of domestic red-ball cricket as a valuable experience more broadly, as shown by a young player's unproductive season.

On-Field Shortcomings and Strategic Lack of Evolution

Only playing hardens cricketers for the many situations they walk out to face, and it is in this area where England have so far fallen well short. It is not only with the bat – harrowing as some of the decision-making has been – but an bowling attack that seems leaderless. No bowler has demonstrated the persistence or discipline that the otherworldly Australian paceman and his teammates have displayed.

The coach's unconventional outlook was freeing during its initial year, an effective, well diagnosed remedy to shake off the lethargy that preceded it. The disappointment now stems from how it has apparently failed to move beyond that initial phase – the lack of an upgrade to the initial philosophy that has seen form taper off to 14 wins and 14 losses from their last 30 Tests.

Player Spotlight and Selection Decisions

Among them is the wicketkeeper-batter, a talent, undoubtedly, but one who is being mercilessly targeted on each side of the bat and has dropped two key chances with the gloves. It probably does not help when your counterpart, Alex Carey, has just produced a virtuoso performance.

Based on the coach's words in the aftermath, England appear set 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 best, with Perth's bouncy pitch and the unusual floodlit Test now in the past.

Another option is to implement the plan stumbled across during the victorious series in New Zealand last year by moving the batsman down to his preferred position as a busy middle order player, giving him the gloves, and picking a new No 3. Bethell scored runs for the Lions recently, or perhaps Will Jacks could perform a comparable function to the former spinner in 2023.

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