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Brendon McCullum loathed the label Bazball from its inception, considering it overly simplistic and maybe anticipating how it could 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 Australian jokes.

But McCullum has contributed to the problem either. After the crushing loss at the Gabba, his insistence that, if there was an issue, England were 'over-prepared' before the pink-ball match was like trying to put out a bin fire with petrol. It could become his lasting legacy as national coach if results do not improve.

In a way, one must admire his commitment to the bit. As much as McCullum says he block out external noise, he will have been all too aware of an England team increasingly characterised as freewheeling and lacking preparation.

The truth, as ever, 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 trained for longer, logging five days compared to Australia's three, due to their lack of exposure to the pink Kookaburra ball and the different seeing conditions.

The Debate of Preparation and Practice

The coach's point about being "over-prepared" was that those five extra days were his decision – the instance he wavered in his belief that less is more. It meant a significant amount of mental energy was expended before they even took the field in the intensity of Australia's stronghold. While nets are a opportunity to iron out skills, they can also become a comfort zone; zero consequence work that mainly maintains the reflexes sharp.

Fixtures are congested such that pre-series state games were not possible (and uncertain value, when you consider England having played three before the whitewash in 2013-14). What is harder to square is the disregard of domestic red-ball cricket as a worthwhile exercise more broadly, as shown by Jacob Bethell's wasted summer.

Match Shortcomings and Strategic Lack of Evolution

Only playing hardens cricketers for the various scenarios they encounter, and it is in this area where England have so far fallen well short. The issue is not just with the batting – as poor as some of the decision-making has been – but an attack that seems without a spearhead. No bowler has demonstrated the persistence or control that the otherworldly Mitchell Starc and his support cast have displayed.

McCullum's unconventional outlook was liberating during its initial year, an excellent, apt remedy to shake off the torpor that came before. The frustration now stems from how it has apparently failed to move beyond that point – the lack of an second phase to the original software that has seen results taper off to an even record from their most recent matches.

Squad Spotlight and Team Dilemmas

Among them is Jamie Smith, a talent, no question, but one who is being mercilessly targeted on each side of the bat and missed two key chances with the gloves. The situation is not aided when your counterpart, the Australian keeper, has just produced a virtuoso display.

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 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 series win in New Zealand 12 months ago by shifting 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 made some runs for the Lions recently, or maybe an all-rounder could fulfil a comparable function to Moeen Ali in 2023.

Ultimately, none of this is perfect, with Australia's superior basics having shattered expectations and forced the team's entire approach into the harsh glare of scrutiny.