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Brendon McCullum loathed the label Bazball since it was coined, viewing it as reductive and perhaps anticipating how it might be weaponised down the line. Currently, down 2-0 in an away Ashes series that began with high hopes, it has become the butt of Australian jokes.

But the coach has not helped himself either. After the crushing loss at the Gabba, his insistence that, if anything, England were 'too prepared' prior to the day-night Test was like attempting to extinguish a rubbish fire with gasoline. It risks becoming his epitaph as national coach if performances do not improve.

On one level, you almost have to admire his commitment to the bit. As much as he says he ignore outside criticism, he will have been all too aware of an England team increasingly characterised as freewheeling and lacking preparation.

The truth, as ever, is more nuanced. England enjoy golf just as much during their necessary down time as their opponents and they train just as much. Prior to the Gabba Test, they did more, logging five days to Australia's three, due to their limited experience to the pink Kookaburra ball and the changes in lighting conditions.

The Debate of Readiness and Training

McCullum's point about being "over-prepared" was that those five extra days were his call – the instance he wavered in his belief that minimal preparation is best. It meant a Test match's worth of focus was used up before they even stepped out in the cauldron of Australia's fortress. And though nets are a chance to iron out technique, they can also become a comfort zone; zero consequence activity that mainly maintains the reactions quick.

Schedules are tight such that pre-series state games were not possible (and uncertain value, as shown by England having played three before the whitewash in 2013-14). What is harder to square is the disregard of county championship cricket as a valuable experience more broadly, evidenced by a young player's unproductive season.

Match Deficiencies and Strategic Stagnation

Only playing prepares cricketers for the many situations they encounter, and it is in this area where England have so far fallen well short. The issue is not just with the bat – as poor as some of the shot selection has been – but an bowling attack that seems leaderless. No bowler has demonstrated the persistence or control that the exceptional Australian paceman and his teammates have delivered.

McCullum's unconventional approach was freeing during its first 12 months, an excellent, well diagnosed remedy to shake off the torpor that preceded it. The frustration now stems from how it has seemingly not evolved past that initial phase – an absence of an upgrade to the original software that has seen form decline to 14 wins and 14 losses from their most recent matches.

Player Focus and Selection Decisions

One such player is the wicketkeeper-batter, a gifted player, no question, but one who is being constantly tested on both edges and missed two key chances with the gloves. It probably does not help when your counterpart, Alex Carey, has just produced a virtuoso display.

Going by the coach's comments after the match, England appear set to keep the faith with Smith in Adelaide. The hope – as is the case – is that a switch to a traditional Test setting 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 12 months ago by moving Ollie Pope down to his more natural home as a busy No. 5 or 6, handing him the gloves, and picking a fresh face at first drop. A young contender scored runs for the Lions recently, or perhaps Will Jacks could perform a similar role to the former spinner in 2023.

In the end, these changes is ideal, with Australia's superior basics having shattered pre-series optimism and forced the team's entire approach into the spotlight.