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Brendon McCullum despised the label Bazball from its inception, viewing it as overly simplistic and maybe foreseeing how it might be used as a weapon down the line. Currently, trailing 2-0 in an Test series in Australia that began with high hopes, it has turned into the subject of Australian jokes.

However McCullum has contributed to the problem either. After the gut-wrenching defeat at the Gabba, his insistence that, if there was an issue, England were 'too prepared' before the day-night Test was like trying to put out a bin fire with gasoline. It could become his epitaph as England head coach if performances do not take an upturn.

In a way, you almost have to admire his commitment to the bit. While he says he ignore outside criticism, he will have been acutely aware of an England team increasingly characterised as freewheeling and underprepared.

The truth, as always, 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, given their lack of exposure to the pink ball and the changes in seeing conditions.

The Question of Preparation and Practice

McCullum's point about being "excessively ready" was that those five extra days were his call – the instance he wavered in his belief that minimal preparation is best. It suggested a significant amount of mental energy was used up before they even stepped out in the cauldron of Australia's fortress. While net practice are a chance to iron out technique, they can also become a comfort zone; zero consequence activity that simply keeps the reactions quick.

Schedules are tight such that pre-series state games were not possible (with no guarantee, as shown by England playing 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 more broadly, evidenced by a young player's unproductive season.

Match Shortcomings and Strategic Lack of Evolution

Match practice alone hardens 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 shot selection has been – but an attack that seems leaderless. No bowler has demonstrated the persistence or control that the otherworldly Australian paceman and his support cast have delivered.

McCullum's unconventional approach was liberating during its initial year, an excellent, apt remedy to eradicate the torpor that preceded it. The frustration now stems from how it has apparently not evolved past that initial phase – the lack of an second phase to the initial philosophy that has seen results decline to an even record from their last 30 Tests.

Squad Spotlight and Selection Dilemmas

One such player is Jamie Smith, a gifted player, no question, but one who is being constantly tested on each side of the bat and missed two crucial opportunities with the gloves. The situation is not aided when your opposite number, Alex Carey, has just produced a masterful 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 return to a traditional match environment triggers his best, with Perth's trampoline surface and the unusual floodlit Test now in the past.

The alternative is to enact the plan stumbled across during the series win in New Zealand 12 months ago by moving Ollie Pope down to his preferred position as a active No. 5 or 6, giving him the gloves, and picking a new No 3. Bethell scored runs for the Lions over the weekend, or perhaps an all-rounder could perform a similar role to the former spinner in 2023.

In the end, these changes is perfect, with Australia's superior basics having destroyed expectations and forced the broader philosophy into the spotlight.