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Brendon McCullum detested the label Bazball the moment it emerged, viewing it as reductive and maybe foreseeing how it could be weaponised in the future. Currently, down 2-0 in an away Ashes series that began with great expectations, it has become the butt of Australian jokes.

But the coach has not helped himself either. Following the gut-wrenching loss at the Gabba, his insistence that, if there was an issue, England were 'over-prepared' prior to the pink-ball match was akin to trying to put out a bin fire with petrol. It risks becoming 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 he claims to block out outside criticism, he will have been acutely aware of an England team increasingly characterised as carefree and underprepared.

The reality, as ever, is not so simple. England play as much golf during their necessary down time as their opponents and they train just as much. Prior to the Gabba Test, they trained for longer, logging five days to Australia's three, due to their limited experience to the pink Kookaburra ball and the changes in seeing conditions.

The Debate of Readiness and Training

The coach's point about being "over-prepared" was that those additional training days were his decision – the instance he blinked in his conviction that minimal preparation is best. It suggested a Test match's worth of focus was used up before they even took the field in the intensity of Australia's stronghold. And though net practice are a chance to refine technique, they can also become a comfort zone; zero consequence work that simply keeps the reflexes sharp.

Schedules are congested such that warm-up matches against state sides were unavailable (and uncertain value, as shown by England having played three before the 5-0 series loss in 2013-14). What is harder to square is the dismissal of domestic red-ball cricket as a worthwhile exercise more broadly, as shown by a young player's unproductive season.

Match Shortcomings and Philosophical Lack of Evolution

Only playing prepares cricketers for the various scenarios they encounter, and it is here where England have thus far fallen well short. It is not only with the batting – as poor as some of the decision-making has been – but an bowling attack that seems without a spearhead. No bowler has shown the persistence or control that the otherworldly Mitchell Starc and his support cast have displayed.

McCullum's free-spirit outlook was liberating during its first 12 months, an effective, well diagnosed remedy to shake off the torpor that came before. The frustration now comes in how it has seemingly not evolved past that initial phase – the lack of an upgrade to the initial philosophy that has seen form decline to an even record from their most recent matches.

Player Focus and Selection Decisions

One such player is the wicketkeeper-batter, a gifted player, undoubtedly, 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 opposite number, Alex Carey, 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 switch to a more familiar Test setting triggers his top form, with Perth's trampoline surface and the unusual floodlit Test now in the past.

The alternative is to enact the plan discovered 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, handing him the wicketkeeping duties, and picking a fresh face at first drop. Bethell scored runs for the Lions over the weekend, or maybe an all-rounder could fulfil a comparable function to Moeen Ali in 2023.

Ultimately, none of this is perfect, however Australia's better fundamentals having destroyed expectations and forced the team's entire approach into the spotlight.