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The England head coach despised the moniker Bazball the moment it emerged, viewing it as reductive and maybe anticipating how it might be used as a weapon down the line. Currently, trailing 2-0 in an Test series in Australia that began with great expectations, it has turned into the subject of Australian jokes.

However the coach has contributed to the problem either. Following the crushing defeat at the Gabba, his claim that, if anything, England were 'over-prepared' prior to the pink-ball match was akin to attempting to extinguish a rubbish fire with petrol. It could become his epitaph as England head coach if performances do not take an upturn.

In a way, you almost have to 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 reality, as always, is more nuanced. England enjoy golf just as much during their necessary down time as their rivals and they practice equally hard. Prior to the Gabba Test, they trained for longer, logging five days to Australia's three, given their lack of exposure to the pink ball and the different lighting conditions.

The Question of Readiness and Training

The coach's point about being "over-prepared" was that those additional training days were his call – the instance he wavered in his conviction that less is more. It meant a significant amount of focus was used up before they even stepped out in the intensity of Australia's fortress. While nets are a opportunity to iron out technique, they can also become a safety blanket; low-pressure work that mainly maintains the reactions quick.

Fixtures are tight such that warm-up matches against state sides were unavailable (with no guarantee, when you consider England playing 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, as shown by Jacob Bethell's unproductive season.

On-Field Shortcomings and Strategic Stagnation

Match practice alone hardens cricketers for the many situations they encounter, and it is here where England have thus far fallen well short. The issue is not just with the bat – harrowing as some of the decision-making has been – but an bowling attack that seems leaderless. None has shown the patience or control that the exceptional Australian paceman and his support cast have delivered.

McCullum's free-spirit outlook was liberating during its first 12 months, an effective, apt solution to shake off the torpor that came before. The frustration now comes in how it has seemingly failed to move beyond that initial phase – the lack of an second phase to the initial philosophy that has seen form taper off to an even record from their most recent matches.

Player Focus and Team Dilemmas

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. The situation is not aided when your opposite number, Alex Carey, has just delivered a virtuoso performance.

Based on McCullum's comments 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 more familiar Test setting unleashes his top form, with Perth's trampoline surface and the unfamiliar day-night format now in the past.

The alternative is to enact the plan discovered during the series win in New Zealand 12 months ago by moving Ollie Pope down to his more natural home as a active middle order player, handing him the wicketkeeping duties, and picking a new No 3. A young contender scored runs for the Lions over the weekend, or perhaps Will Jacks could fulfil a comparable function to Moeen Ali in 2023.

Ultimately, these changes is ideal, however Australia's superior basics having shattered pre-series optimism and pushed the broader philosophy into the spotlight.