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The England head coach despised the moniker Bazball the moment it emerged, viewing it as 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 high hopes, it has turned into the subject of mockery from Australia.

But the coach has contributed to the problem either. After the crushing loss at the Gabba, his claim that, if there was an issue, England were 'too prepared' prior to the pink-ball match was like attempting to extinguish a bin fire with gasoline. 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 McCullum says he block out outside criticism, he must have been acutely aware of an England team increasingly characterised as freewheeling and lacking preparation.

The truth, as always, is more nuanced. England enjoy golf just as much during their necessary down time as their opponents and they practice equally hard. Before the Gabba Test, they did more, completing five days to Australia's three, given their limited experience to the pink ball and the changes in lighting conditions.

The Debate of Readiness and Training

The coach's point about being "excessively ready" was that those five extra days were his call – the instance he blinked in his belief that less is more. It suggested a significant amount of focus was used up before they even took the field in the intensity of Australia's stronghold. While nets are a chance to refine technique, they can also become a safety blanket; zero consequence work that mainly maintains the reactions quick.

Schedules are tight such that warm-up matches against state sides were unavailable (and no guarantee, when you consider England playing three before the 5-0 series loss in 2013-14). More difficult to justify is the dismissal of county championship cricket as a worthwhile exercise more broadly, evidenced by a young player's wasted summer.

Match Shortcomings and Philosophical Stagnation

Only playing hardens cricketers for the many situations they walk out to face, and it is here where England have so far been found lacking. It is not only with the bat – harrowing as some of the shot selection has been – but an bowling attack that seems without a spearhead. No bowler has shown the persistence or control that the exceptional Australian paceman and his teammates have displayed.

McCullum's free-spirit outlook was liberating during its initial year, an excellent, well diagnosed remedy to shake off the torpor that came before. The frustration now stems from how it has seemingly failed to move beyond that initial phase – the lack of an second phase to the initial philosophy that has seen results taper off to 14 wins and 14 losses from their last 30 Tests.

Squad Spotlight and Selection Dilemmas

One such player is Jamie Smith, a gifted player, no question, but one who is being constantly tested on both edges and missed two key chances as wicketkeeper. It probably does not help when your opposite number, Alex Carey, has just delivered a virtuoso display.

Based on the coach's words in the aftermath, England look likely to keep the faith with Smith in Adelaide. The expectation – as is the case – is that a return to a more familiar Test setting triggers his best, with Perth's bouncy pitch and the unfamiliar floodlit Test now in the past.

Another option is to enact the plan stumbled across during the victorious series in New Zealand last year by shifting the batsman down to his more natural home as a active No. 5 or 6, giving him the gloves, and picking a fresh face at first drop. A young contender made some runs for the Lions recently, or maybe Will Jacks could perform a comparable function to Moeen Ali in 2023.

In the end, none of this is perfect, with Australia's superior basics having destroyed pre-series optimism and pushed the broader philosophy into the spotlight.