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The England head coach despised the label Bazball since it was coined, viewing it as reductive and perhaps anticipating how it could be weaponised in the future. Currently, trailing 2-0 in an Test series in Australia that started with high hopes, it has turned into the subject of Australian jokes.

But the coach has not helped himself either. After the crushing defeat at the Gabba, his insistence that, if there was an issue, England were 'over-prepared' before the day-night Test was akin to 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.

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

The reality, as ever, is not so simple. 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, completing five days compared to Australia's three, given their limited experience to the pink ball and the changes in seeing conditions.

The Debate of Readiness and Training

The coach's point about being "excessively ready" was that those five extra days were his decision – the moment he blinked in his conviction that less is more. It suggested a Test match's worth of focus was used up before they even stepped out in the intensity of Australia's stronghold. While nets are a opportunity to iron out technique, they can also become a safety blanket; zero consequence work that mainly maintains the reactions quick.

Schedules are congested such that pre-series state games were not possible (with uncertain value, when you consider England playing three before the whitewash in 2013-14). More difficult to justify is the dismissal of domestic red-ball cricket as a worthwhile exercise in general, as shown by a young player's unproductive season.

Match Shortcomings and Strategic Lack of Evolution

Only playing prepares cricketers for the many situations they encounter, 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 leaderless. None has demonstrated the persistence or discipline that the exceptional Mitchell Starc and his teammates have delivered.

The coach's free-spirit outlook was liberating during its first 12 months, an excellent, well diagnosed solution to eradicate the torpor that came before. The frustration now stems from how it has apparently failed to move beyond that initial phase – an absence of an upgrade to the original software that has seen form decline to 14 wins and 14 losses from their most recent matches.

Squad Spotlight and Team Decisions

One such player is the wicketkeeper-batter, a gifted player, undoubtedly, but one who is being constantly tested on both edges and missed two key chances as wicketkeeper. It probably does not help when your opposite number, the Australian keeper, has just produced a masterful display.

Based on McCullum's words in the aftermath, England appear set to persist with Smith in Adelaide. The hope – as is the case – is that a switch to a traditional match environment triggers his top form, with Perth's trampoline surface and the unfamiliar floodlit Test now in the past.

Another option is to implement the plan stumbled across during the series win in New Zealand 12 months ago by moving Ollie Pope down to his more natural home as a active No. 5 or 6, giving him the gloves, and picking a fresh face at first drop. A young contender made some runs for the Lions recently, or maybe Will Jacks could fulfil a similar role to the former spinner in 2023.

In the end, these changes is ideal, however Australia's better fundamentals having shattered pre-series optimism and pushed the broader philosophy into the harsh glare of scrutiny.