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Brendon McCullum despised the moniker Bazball from its inception, deeming it overly simplistic and perhaps anticipating how it could be weaponised down the line. Right now, down 2-0 in an Test series in Australia that started with great expectations, it has turned into the subject of Australian jokes.

But the coach has contributed to the problem either. Following the gut-wrenching defeat at the Gabba, his insistence that, if there was an issue, England were 'too prepared' prior to the pink-ball match was like trying to put out a bin fire with gasoline. It could become his lasting legacy as England head coach if results do not take an upturn.

On one level, you almost have to admire his commitment to the bit. While he claims to block out outside criticism, he must have been acutely aware of an England team often described as freewheeling and underprepared.

The truth, as always, is not so simple. England play as much golf during their necessary down time as their opponents and they train just as much. Before the Gabba Test, they trained for longer, logging five days to Australia's three, given their lack of exposure to the pink ball and the changes in seeing conditions.

The Debate of Preparation and Practice

McCullum's point about being "excessively ready" was that those additional training days were his decision – the instance he blinked in his conviction that minimal preparation is best. It meant a Test match's worth of focus was used up before they even stepped out in the intensity of Australia's stronghold. And though nets are a chance to iron out technique, they can also become a safety blanket; zero consequence activity that mainly maintains the reflexes sharp.

Schedules are congested such that warm-up matches against state sides were not possible (with uncertain value, when you consider England having played three before the whitewash in 2013-14). What is harder to square is the dismissal of county championship cricket as a valuable experience in general, evidenced by a young player's wasted summer.

Match Deficiencies and Strategic Stagnation

Match practice alone hardens cricketers for the many situations they encounter, and it is here where England have so far fallen well short. The issue is not just with the batting – harrowing as some of the shot selection has been – but an bowling attack that seems without a spearhead. None has shown the patience or discipline that the otherworldly Australian paceman and his teammates have displayed.

McCullum's unconventional approach was freeing during its initial year, an excellent, well diagnosed remedy to eradicate the torpor that came before. The frustration now comes in how it has seemingly not evolved past that point – an absence of an second phase to the initial philosophy that has seen results taper off to 14 wins and 14 losses from their last 30 Tests.

Player Focus and Team Decisions

One such player is the wicketkeeper-batter, a talent, no question, but one who is being mercilessly targeted on each side of the bat and has dropped two key chances as wicketkeeper. It probably does not help when your counterpart, Alex Carey, has just produced a virtuoso performance.

Going by the coach's comments after the match, England appear set to persist with Smith in Adelaide. The expectation – as is the case – is that a switch to a more familiar Test setting triggers his best, with Perth's bouncy pitch and the unusual floodlit Test now in the past.

Another option is to implement the plan discovered during the victorious series in New Zealand 12 months ago by shifting Ollie Pope down to his preferred position 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 over the weekend, or maybe Will Jacks could fulfil a similar role to Moeen Ali in 2023.

In the end, none of this is ideal, however Australia's better fundamentals having destroyed pre-series optimism and pushed the broader philosophy into the harsh glare of scrutiny.