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Brendon McCullum despised the term Bazball since it was coined, deeming it reductive and maybe foreseeing how it might be weaponised down the line. Currently, trailing 2-0 in an away Ashes series that began with high hopes, it has turned into the subject of mockery from Australia.

But the coach has contributed to the problem either. Following the crushing defeat at the Gabba, his claim that, if anything, England were 'over-prepared' before the day-night Test was like attempting to extinguish a rubbish fire with gasoline. It risks becoming his epitaph as England head coach if results do not improve.

In a way, one must admire his commitment to the bit. While he claims to ignore outside criticism, he will have been acutely aware of an England team often described as freewheeling and underprepared.

The reality, as ever, is not so simple. England enjoy golf just as much during their scheduled breaks as their rivals and they train just as much. Prior to the Gabba Test, they trained for longer, logging five days to Australia's three, due to their lack of exposure to the pink Kookaburra ball and the different seeing conditions.

The Question of Readiness and Practice

The coach's point about being "over-prepared" was that those additional training days were his decision – the moment he wavered in his belief that minimal preparation is best. It meant a Test match's worth of focus was expended before they even stepped out in the intensity of Australia's fortress. While nets are a chance to refine skills, they can also become a safety blanket; low-pressure work that mainly keeps the reactions quick.

Fixtures are congested such that warm-up matches against state sides were unavailable (with no guarantee, when you consider England having played three before the 5-0 series loss in 2013-14). What is harder to square is the disregard of county championship cricket as a worthwhile exercise in general, evidenced by Jacob Bethell's unproductive season.

Match Deficiencies and Strategic Stagnation

Match practice alone prepares cricketers for the many situations they walk out to face, 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 without a spearhead. No bowler has demonstrated the patience or discipline that the otherworldly Australian paceman and his support cast have delivered.

The coach's unconventional approach was liberating during its initial year, an effective, well diagnosed solution to eradicate the torpor that preceded it. The disappointment now stems from how it has seemingly not evolved past that initial phase – an absence of an second phase to the original software that has seen form decline to an even record from their last 30 Tests.

Squad Spotlight and Team Decisions

Among them is Jamie Smith, a gifted player, no question, 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, Alex Carey, has just delivered a masterful performance.

Going by the coach's comments after the match, England appear set to persist with Smith in Adelaide. The expectation – similar to the broader situation – is that a switch to a traditional Test setting unleashes his best, with Perth's trampoline surface and the unusual day-night format now out of the way.

The alternative is to implement the plan stumbled across during the series win in New Zealand last year by shifting the batsman down to his more natural home as a busy No. 5 or 6, giving him the gloves, and picking a fresh face at first drop. A young contender scored runs for the Lions over the weekend, or maybe an all-rounder could fulfil a similar role to Moeen Ali in 2023.

Ultimately, these changes is perfect, however Australia's superior basics having shattered expectations and pushed the team's entire approach into the spotlight.