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Brendon McCullum loathed the label Bazball since it was coined, deeming it reductive and maybe foreseeing how it could be weaponised down the line. Currently, trailing 2-0 in an Test series in Australia that began with great expectations, it has become the butt of mockery from Australia.

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 'over-prepared' prior to the day-night Test was like attempting to extinguish a rubbish fire with gasoline. It could become his lasting legacy as national coach if results do not improve.

On one level, one must admire his dedication to the philosophy. While McCullum claims to ignore external noise, he will have been all too aware of an England team increasingly characterised as carefree 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, completing five days compared to Australia's three, given their lack of exposure to the pink Kookaburra ball and the different seeing conditions.

The Question of Readiness and Training

McCullum's point about being "over-prepared" was that those additional training days were his call – the moment he wavered in his conviction that less is more. It suggested a significant amount of focus was used up before they even took the field in the intensity of Australia's stronghold. And though net practice are a chance to refine skills, they can also become a safety blanket; zero consequence activity that simply keeps the reactions quick.

Fixtures are congested such that warm-up matches against state sides were unavailable (with no guarantee, as shown by England playing three before the 5-0 series loss in 2013-14). What is harder to square is the disregard of domestic red-ball cricket as a valuable experience in general, evidenced by Jacob Bethell's unproductive season.

Match Shortcomings and Philosophical Stagnation

Match practice alone hardens cricketers for the various scenarios they encounter, and it is in this area where England have thus 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 leaderless. None has shown the patience or discipline that the otherworldly Mitchell Starc and his teammates have delivered.

The coach's free-spirit approach was freeing during its initial year, an excellent, well diagnosed solution to eradicate the torpor that preceded it. The disappointment now stems from how it has seemingly failed to move beyond that point – the lack of an upgrade to the initial philosophy that has seen results taper off to 14 wins and 14 losses from their most recent matches.

Squad Focus and Selection Decisions

Among them is Jamie Smith, a gifted player, undoubtedly, but one who is being constantly tested on both edges and has dropped two crucial opportunities with the gloves. It probably does not help when your counterpart, the Australian keeper, has just produced a virtuoso display.

Going by McCullum's comments after the match, England look likely to persist with Smith in Adelaide. The expectation – as is the case – is that a switch to a traditional match environment triggers his top form, with Perth's bouncy pitch and the unfamiliar floodlit Test now in the past.

The alternative is to implement the plan stumbled across during the victorious series in New Zealand 12 months ago by shifting the batsman down to his preferred position as a active No. 5 or 6, handing him the gloves, and picking a new No 3. Bethell made some runs for the Lions over the weekend, or perhaps Will Jacks could perform a similar role to Moeen Ali in 2023.

In the end, none of this is ideal, with Australia's superior basics having destroyed expectations and forced the broader philosophy into the spotlight.