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The England head coach despised the moniker Bazball the moment it emerged, deeming it reductive and maybe foreseeing how it could be used as a weapon in the future. Currently, trailing 2-0 in an away Ashes series that started with great expectations, it has turned into the subject of Australian jokes.

However McCullum has contributed to the problem either. Following the crushing defeat at the Gabba, his claim that, if there was an issue, England were 'too prepared' before the pink-ball match was akin to attempting to extinguish a rubbish fire with gasoline. It could become his epitaph as England head coach if performances do not improve.

In a way, one must admire his commitment to the bit. As much as McCullum claims to ignore outside criticism, he will have been all too aware of an England team increasingly characterised as carefree and lacking preparation.

The truth, as always, is not so simple. England play as much golf during their scheduled breaks as their rivals and they practice equally hard. Before 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 seeing conditions.

The Debate of Readiness and Training

McCullum's point about being "excessively ready" was that those additional training days were his decision – the instance he wavered in his conviction that less is more. It suggested a Test match's worth of mental energy was used up before they even stepped out in the cauldron of Australia's stronghold. While net practice are a opportunity to refine skills, they can also become a comfort zone; low-pressure activity that mainly keeps the reflexes sharp.

Fixtures are congested such that warm-up matches against state sides were not possible (with no guarantee, when you consider England having played three before the 5-0 series loss in 2013-14). What is harder to square is the dismissal of county championship cricket as a worthwhile exercise in general, as shown by Jacob Bethell's wasted summer.

On-Field Shortcomings and Strategic Lack of Evolution

Only playing prepares cricketers for the various scenarios they encounter, and it is in this area where England have so far been found lacking. The issue is not just with the batting – as poor as some of the decision-making has been – but an bowling attack that seems leaderless. None has shown the patience or discipline that the exceptional Australian paceman and his teammates have displayed.

McCullum's unconventional approach was liberating during its first 12 months, an excellent, well diagnosed solution to eradicate the lethargy that preceded it. The frustration now stems from how it has seemingly failed to move beyond that point – the lack of an second phase to the initial philosophy that has seen results decline to 14 wins and 14 losses from their last 30 Tests.

Player Spotlight and Team Dilemmas

One such player is the wicketkeeper-batter, a talent, no question, but one who is being constantly tested on each side of the bat and missed two key chances with the gloves. The situation is not aided when your opposite number, Alex Carey, has just produced a masterful display.

Going by McCullum's comments in the aftermath, England appear set to persist with Smith in Adelaide. The expectation – similar to the broader situation – is that a return to a more familiar Test setting unleashes his top form, with Perth's bouncy pitch and the unfamiliar floodlit Test now in the past.

Another option is to implement 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, giving him the wicketkeeping duties, and selecting a new No 3. Bethell made some runs for the Lions over the weekend, or maybe an all-rounder could perform a comparable function to the former spinner in 2023.

In the end, none of this is ideal, with Australia's superior basics having destroyed expectations and pushed the broader philosophy into the spotlight.