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The England head coach loathed the term Bazball since it was coined, deeming it overly simplistic and maybe foreseeing how it might be used as a weapon in the future. Right now, trailing 2-0 in an away Ashes series that began with great expectations, it has become the butt of mockery from Australia.

However McCullum has not helped himself either. Following the crushing defeat at the Gabba, his insistence that, if anything, England were 'over-prepared' prior to the pink-ball match was like attempting to extinguish a rubbish fire with gasoline. It could become his lasting legacy as England head coach if results do not take an upturn.

In a way, you almost have to admire his commitment to the bit. While McCullum claims to ignore external noise, he must have been acutely aware of an England team often described as carefree and underprepared.

The truth, as always, is more nuanced. England play as much golf during their necessary down time as their rivals and they train just as much. Prior to the Gabba Test, they did more, logging five days compared to Australia's three, due to their lack of exposure to the pink ball and the changes in lighting conditions.

The Debate of Preparation and Training

McCullum's point about being "excessively ready" was that those additional training days were his call – the moment he wavered in his belief that less is more. It suggested a Test match's worth of mental energy was used up before they even took the field in the intensity of Australia's fortress. While nets are a chance to iron out skills, they can also become a safety blanket; zero consequence work that simply maintains the reactions quick.

Fixtures are congested such that warm-up matches against state sides were not possible (with uncertain value, as shown by England having played three before the 5-0 series loss in 2013-14). More difficult to justify is the disregard of county championship cricket as a worthwhile exercise in general, evidenced by Jacob Bethell's unproductive season.

On-Field Shortcomings and Strategic Stagnation

Match practice alone prepares cricketers for the various scenarios they walk out to face, and it is here where England have so far been found lacking. It is not only with the batting – as poor as some of the shot selection has been – but an bowling attack that seems without a spearhead. No bowler has shown the persistence or discipline that the exceptional Australian paceman and his teammates have delivered.

The coach's free-spirit approach was liberating during its first 12 months, an effective, apt remedy to shake off the torpor that preceded it. The disappointment now stems from how it has apparently not evolved past that initial phase – an absence of an upgrade to the initial philosophy that has seen form decline to an even record from their most recent matches.

Squad Spotlight and Selection Dilemmas

Among them is the wicketkeeper-batter, a talent, no question, but one who is being constantly tested on each side of the bat and has dropped two key chances with the gloves. It probably does not help when your opposite number, the Australian keeper, has just produced a virtuoso performance.

Going by the coach's words in the aftermath, England appear set to persist with Smith in Adelaide. The expectation – 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 day-night format now out of the way.

The alternative is to enact the plan stumbled across during the victorious series in New Zealand last year by shifting the batsman down to his more natural home as a active middle order player, giving him the wicketkeeping duties, and selecting a fresh face at first drop. A young contender made some runs for the Lions over the weekend, or maybe Will Jacks could fulfil a comparable function to Moeen Ali in 2023.

In the end, none of this is perfect, with Australia's superior basics having shattered pre-series optimism and forced the team's entire approach into the spotlight.