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Brendon McCullum despised the term Bazball the moment it emerged, considering it overly simplistic and maybe anticipating how it might be used as a weapon in the future. Currently, trailing 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. Following the crushing defeat at the Gabba, his claim that, if there was an issue, England were 'over-prepared' before the day-night Test was like trying to put out a rubbish fire with petrol. It risks becoming his lasting legacy as national coach if results do not take an upturn.

On one level, one must admire his dedication to the philosophy. As much as McCullum claims to ignore outside criticism, he must have been all too aware of an England team increasingly characterised as freewheeling and underprepared.

The reality, as always, is more nuanced. England enjoy golf just as much during their necessary down time as their opponents and they train just as much. Before the Gabba Test, they did more, logging five days to Australia's three, due to their limited experience to the pink ball and the different lighting conditions.

The Debate of Preparation and Practice

The coach's point about being "over-prepared" was that those additional training days were his decision – the moment he blinked in his belief that minimal preparation is best. It meant a significant amount of focus was expended before they even took the field in the cauldron of Australia's fortress. While nets are a chance to iron out technique, they can also become a comfort zone; zero consequence work that simply maintains the reflexes sharp.

Schedules are congested such that pre-series state games were not possible (and uncertain value, as shown by England playing 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 Philosophical Stagnation

Match practice alone prepares cricketers for the many situations they walk out to face, and it is in this area where England have so far fallen well short. The issue is not just with the bat – as poor as some of the shot selection has been – but an bowling attack that seems leaderless. None has demonstrated the patience or discipline that the otherworldly Mitchell Starc and his teammates have displayed.

McCullum's free-spirit approach was liberating during its initial year, an excellent, well diagnosed solution to shake off the lethargy that preceded it. The frustration now stems from how it has apparently not evolved past that initial phase – an absence of an second phase to the initial philosophy that has seen form decline to an even record from their last 30 Tests.

Player Focus and Team Decisions

One such player is Jamie Smith, a talent, no question, but one who is being constantly tested on each side of the bat and missed two key chances with the gloves. It probably does not help when your counterpart, the Australian keeper, 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 switch to a more familiar match environment unleashes his best, with Perth's trampoline surface and the unfamiliar floodlit Test now out of the way.

Another option is to enact 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 No. 5 or 6, giving him the wicketkeeping duties, and picking a fresh face at first drop. Bethell made some runs for the Lions recently, or maybe an all-rounder could fulfil a comparable function to the former spinner in 2023.

Ultimately, these changes is perfect, with Australia's better fundamentals having destroyed expectations and pushed the team's entire approach into the spotlight.