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Brendon McCullum despised the term Bazball from its inception, viewing it as reductive and maybe foreseeing how it might be weaponised in the future. Right now, down 2-0 in an Test series in Australia that started with high hopes, it has turned into the subject of mockery from Australia.

But McCullum has contributed to the problem either. Following the crushing defeat at the Gabba, his insistence that, if anything, England were 'too prepared' prior to the day-night Test was like attempting to extinguish a bin fire with gasoline. It risks becoming his lasting legacy as England head coach if results do not improve.

On one level, one must admire his commitment to the bit. While McCullum claims to ignore external noise, he must have been acutely aware of an England team increasingly characterised as freewheeling and underprepared.

The truth, as always, is not so simple. England enjoy golf just as much during their scheduled breaks as their rivals and they practice equally hard. Prior to the Gabba Test, they did more, logging five days to Australia's three, given their lack of exposure to the pink ball and the different lighting conditions.

The Question of Readiness and Practice

McCullum's point about being "excessively ready" was that those five extra days were his decision – the moment he wavered in his conviction that minimal preparation is best. It suggested a Test match's worth of focus was used up before they even took the field in the cauldron of Australia's stronghold. And though net practice are a opportunity to iron out technique, they can also become a comfort zone; low-pressure activity that mainly maintains the reflexes sharp.

Fixtures are tight such that warm-up matches against state sides were not possible (and no guarantee, as shown by England having played three before the whitewash in 2013-14). More difficult to justify is the dismissal of county championship cricket as a worthwhile exercise in general, as shown by a young player's wasted summer.

On-Field Shortcomings and Strategic Stagnation

Only playing prepares cricketers for the various scenarios they walk out to face, 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 decision-making has been – but an bowling attack that seems leaderless. None has demonstrated the patience or discipline that the exceptional Australian paceman and his support cast have displayed.

McCullum's free-spirit approach was freeing during its initial year, an excellent, well diagnosed solution to eradicate the lethargy that came before. The disappointment now stems from how it has seemingly not evolved past that initial phase – the lack of an second phase to the initial philosophy that has seen form taper off to an even record from their most recent matches.

Player Spotlight and Team Dilemmas

Among them is Jamie Smith, a talent, undoubtedly, but one who is being mercilessly targeted on both edges and has dropped two crucial opportunities with the gloves. The situation is not aided when your opposite number, the Australian keeper, has just delivered a virtuoso display.

Going by McCullum's comments in the aftermath, England look likely to persist with Smith in Adelaide. The expectation – similar to the broader situation – is that a switch to a more familiar match environment unleashes his top form, with Perth's trampoline surface and the unusual floodlit Test now in the past.

The alternative is to implement the plan discovered during the series win in New Zealand 12 months ago by moving Ollie Pope down to his more natural home as a busy middle order player, giving him the gloves, and selecting a new No 3. Bethell made some runs for the Lions over the weekend, or maybe an all-rounder could perform a similar role to Moeen Ali in 2023.

Ultimately, these changes is ideal, with Australia's better fundamentals having shattered expectations and pushed the team's entire approach into the spotlight.