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Brendon McCullum despised the label Bazball since it was coined, deeming it overly simplistic and perhaps foreseeing how it could be weaponised down the line. Right now, down 2-0 in an Test series in Australia that started with great expectations, it has become the butt of Australian jokes.

But the coach has contributed to the problem either. After the crushing defeat at the Gabba, his insistence that, if anything, England were 'over-prepared' before the pink-ball match was akin to attempting to extinguish a rubbish fire with petrol. It could become his lasting legacy as national coach if performances do not take an upturn.

In a way, you almost have to admire his commitment to the bit. As much as McCullum claims to block out external noise, he will have been all too aware of an England team often described as freewheeling and lacking preparation.

The reality, as ever, is more nuanced. England enjoy golf just as much during their scheduled breaks as their opponents and they train just as much. Prior to the Gabba Test, they trained for longer, completing five days to Australia's three, due to their lack of exposure to the pink ball and the changes in lighting conditions.

The Debate of Preparation 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 minimal preparation is best. It suggested a significant amount of focus was expended before they even stepped out in the cauldron of Australia's fortress. While net practice are a opportunity to iron out skills, they can also become a safety blanket; zero consequence activity that simply keeps the reactions quick.

Fixtures are tight such that pre-series state games were unavailable (and uncertain value, as shown by England having played three before the whitewash in 2013-14). More difficult to justify is the dismissal of county championship cricket as a valuable experience more broadly, evidenced by a young player's unproductive season.

On-Field Shortcomings and Strategic Lack of Evolution

Match practice alone hardens cricketers for the various scenarios they encounter, and it is here where England have so far been found lacking. The issue is not just with the batting – as poor as some of the shot selection has been – but an bowling attack that seems without a spearhead. None has shown the persistence or discipline that the otherworldly Mitchell Starc and his teammates have delivered.

The coach's free-spirit outlook was liberating during its first 12 months, an effective, apt solution to shake off the lethargy that came before. The frustration now comes in how it has seemingly not evolved past 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

Among them is the wicketkeeper-batter, a talent, no question, but one who is being constantly tested on both edges and has dropped two crucial opportunities as wicketkeeper. It probably does not help when your counterpart, the Australian keeper, has just produced a virtuoso display.

Based on McCullum's words in the aftermath, England look likely to persist with Smith in Adelaide. The expectation – similar to the broader situation – is that a return to a traditional Test setting triggers his best, with Perth's bouncy pitch and the unfamiliar day-night format now in the past.

Another option is to implement the plan stumbled across during the victorious series in New Zealand last year by shifting Ollie Pope down to his more natural home as a busy middle order player, giving him the wicketkeeping duties, and picking a new No 3. A young contender made some runs for the Lions recently, or maybe an all-rounder could fulfil a similar role to the former spinner in 2023.

In the end, these changes is perfect, with Australia's superior basics having destroyed pre-series optimism and pushed the team's entire approach into the spotlight.