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The England head coach loathed the term Bazball since it was coined, viewing it as overly simplistic and maybe foreseeing how it might be weaponised in the future. Right now, trailing 2-0 in an away Ashes series that started with high hopes, it has turned into the subject of mockery from Australia.

But McCullum has not helped himself either. Following the gut-wrenching loss at the Gabba, his insistence that, if there was an issue, England were 'too prepared' before the pink-ball match was like trying to put out a bin fire with gasoline. It risks becoming his lasting legacy as England head coach if results do not take an upturn.

In a way, you almost have to admire his commitment to the bit. As much as he claims to ignore outside criticism, he will have been acutely aware of an England team often described as carefree and underprepared.

The truth, as always, is not so simple. England play as much golf during their necessary down time as their rivals and they practice equally hard. Prior to the Gabba Test, they trained for longer, completing 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 Practice

The coach's point about being "excessively ready" was that those additional training days were his call – the instance he blinked in his belief that minimal preparation is best. It meant a Test match's worth of focus was used up before they even took the field in the cauldron of Australia's fortress. And though nets are a opportunity to refine technique, they can also become a comfort zone; low-pressure work that mainly maintains the reactions quick.

Schedules are tight such that warm-up matches against state sides were not possible (with no guarantee, when you consider England playing three before the 5-0 series loss in 2013-14). More difficult to justify is the disregard of domestic red-ball cricket as a worthwhile exercise more broadly, as shown by Jacob Bethell's unproductive season.

On-Field Shortcomings and Philosophical Stagnation

Match practice alone hardens cricketers for the many situations they walk out to face, and it is here where England have so 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 without a spearhead. No bowler has shown the persistence or discipline that the otherworldly Mitchell Starc and his teammates have delivered.

McCullum's unconventional approach was freeing during its initial year, an effective, well diagnosed remedy to eradicate the lethargy that preceded it. The frustration now stems from how it has seemingly not evolved past that initial phase – an absence of an upgrade to the initial philosophy that has seen results taper off to an even record from their most recent matches.

Squad Focus and Team Dilemmas

Among them is Jamie Smith, a talent, undoubtedly, 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.

Going by the coach's comments in the aftermath, England look likely to keep the faith with Smith in Adelaide. The hope – as is the case – is that a switch to a more familiar match environment unleashes his top form, with Perth's trampoline surface and the unusual floodlit Test now out of the way.

Another option is to enact the plan discovered during the victorious series in New Zealand last year by moving the batsman down to his more natural home as a active No. 5 or 6, handing him the gloves, and selecting a fresh face at first drop. Bethell made some runs for the Lions recently, or maybe Will Jacks could perform a comparable function to the former spinner in 2023.

In the end, none of this is perfect, however Australia's superior basics having shattered pre-series optimism and pushed the team's entire approach into the harsh glare of scrutiny.