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The England head coach detested the label Bazball the moment it emerged, deeming it overly simplistic and maybe anticipating how it could be used as a weapon down the line. Currently, down 2-0 in an Test series in Australia that began with high hopes, it has become the butt of Australian jokes.

But the coach has contributed to the problem either. Following the gut-wrenching loss at the Gabba, his insistence that, if anything, England were 'too prepared' prior to the pink-ball match was like attempting to extinguish a rubbish fire with petrol. It risks becoming his epitaph as national coach if results do not take an upturn.

On one level, you almost have to admire his dedication to the philosophy. As much as he claims to block out external noise, he must have been acutely aware of an England team increasingly characterised as carefree and lacking preparation.

The reality, as always, is not so simple. England play as much golf during their scheduled breaks as their rivals and they train just as much. Before the Gabba Test, they trained for longer, completing five days compared to Australia's three, due to their limited experience to the pink Kookaburra ball and the different seeing conditions.

The Debate of Preparation and Training

The coach's point about being "over-prepared" was that those additional training days were his call – the instance he blinked in his belief that minimal preparation is best. It suggested a significant amount of mental energy was expended before they even took the field in the intensity of Australia's fortress. While nets are a chance to refine technique, they can also become a comfort zone; low-pressure work that simply keeps the reflexes sharp.

Fixtures are tight such that warm-up matches against state sides were unavailable (with uncertain value, when you consider England having played three before the whitewash in 2013-14). What is harder to square is the dismissal of domestic red-ball cricket as a valuable experience more broadly, evidenced by a young player's unproductive season.

Match Shortcomings and Philosophical Lack of Evolution

Match practice alone 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 shown the persistence or control that the exceptional Australian paceman and his teammates have delivered.

McCullum's unconventional approach was liberating during its first 12 months, an effective, well diagnosed solution to shake off the torpor that preceded it. The disappointment now stems from how it has apparently not evolved past that point – the lack of an second phase to the initial philosophy that has seen form taper off to 14 wins and 14 losses from their last 30 Tests.

Squad Focus and Team Dilemmas

One such player is Jamie Smith, a talent, no question, but one who is being mercilessly targeted on each side of the bat and has dropped two key chances as wicketkeeper. The situation is not aided when your counterpart, the Australian keeper, has just delivered a virtuoso performance.

Based on the coach's words in the aftermath, England look likely to persist with Smith in Adelaide. The hope – similar to the broader situation – is that a return to a traditional Test setting unleashes his best, with Perth's trampoline surface and the unusual floodlit Test now in the past.

Another option is to implement the plan discovered during the series win in New Zealand last year by moving Ollie Pope down to his more natural home as a busy No. 5 or 6, handing him the gloves, and picking a fresh face at first drop. Bethell made some runs for the Lions recently, or maybe an all-rounder could perform a similar role to the former spinner in 2023.

In the end, these changes is ideal, however Australia's superior basics having destroyed expectations and forced the team's entire approach into the harsh glare of scrutiny.