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The England head coach despised the moniker Bazball from its inception, viewing it as reductive and perhaps foreseeing how it could be used as a weapon in the future. Right now, trailing 2-0 in an Test series in Australia that began with high hopes, it has turned into the subject of Australian jokes.

However McCullum has not helped himself either. Following the crushing defeat at the Gabba, his insistence that, if there was an issue, England were 'over-prepared' prior to the pink-ball match was like attempting to extinguish a bin fire with petrol. It risks becoming his lasting legacy as national coach if performances do not improve.

On one level, one must admire his dedication to the philosophy. While he claims to block out outside criticism, he will have been all too aware of an England team often described as freewheeling and lacking preparation.

The reality, as ever, is more nuanced. England enjoy golf just as much during their scheduled breaks as their rivals and they train just as much. Before the Gabba Test, they did more, completing five days compared to Australia's three, due to their limited experience to the pink Kookaburra ball and the different seeing conditions.

The Question of Readiness and Training

McCullum's point about being "excessively ready" was that those additional training days were his call – the instance he wavered in his conviction that less is more. It suggested a Test match's worth of focus was expended before they even took the field in the cauldron of Australia's stronghold. And though nets are a opportunity to refine technique, they can also become a comfort zone; low-pressure work that mainly keeps the reactions quick.

Fixtures are congested such that pre-series state games were unavailable (with no guarantee, when you consider England having played three before the whitewash in 2013-14). What is harder to square is the dismissal of county championship cricket as a valuable experience in general, as shown by Jacob Bethell's wasted summer.

Match Shortcomings and Strategic Stagnation

Match practice alone hardens cricketers for the many situations they encounter, and it is here where England have thus far been found lacking. 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. No bowler has demonstrated the patience or discipline that the otherworldly Mitchell Starc and his support cast have displayed.

McCullum's free-spirit approach was freeing during its first 12 months, an excellent, well diagnosed solution to shake off the torpor that came before. The frustration now stems from 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 14 wins and 14 losses from their last 30 Tests.

Squad Spotlight and Team Dilemmas

One such player is Jamie Smith, 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 counterpart, the Australian keeper, has just delivered a masterful display.

Based on the coach's words after the match, England appear set to keep the faith with Smith in Adelaide. The expectation – as is the case – is that a return to a more familiar match environment triggers his top form, with Perth's bouncy pitch and the unfamiliar floodlit Test now in the past.

Another option is to enact the plan discovered during the series win in New Zealand last year by moving the batsman down to his more natural home as a active middle order player, giving him the gloves, and selecting a new No 3. Bethell scored runs for the Lions over the weekend, or maybe an all-rounder could fulfil a similar role to Moeen Ali in 2023.

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