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The England head coach loathed the label Bazball since it was coined, viewing it as reductive and perhaps anticipating how it could be used as a weapon down the line. Currently, trailing 2-0 in an away Ashes series that started with great expectations, it has turned into the subject of Australian jokes.

However the coach has contributed to the problem either. Following the crushing defeat at the Gabba, his insistence that, if there was an issue, England were 'over-prepared' before the pink-ball match was like trying to put out a bin fire with petrol. It risks becoming his epitaph 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 McCullum claims to ignore external noise, he will have been acutely aware of an England team often described as freewheeling and underprepared.

The truth, as always, is more nuanced. 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, logging five days to Australia's three, given their lack of exposure to the pink ball and the changes in seeing conditions.

The Question of Preparation and Practice

McCullum's point about being "excessively ready" was that those additional training days were his call – the moment he wavered in his belief that minimal preparation is best. It suggested a Test match's worth of focus was used up before they even stepped out in the cauldron of Australia's fortress. While nets are a chance to iron out technique, they can also become a safety blanket; low-pressure work that mainly keeps the reactions quick.

Schedules are congested such that warm-up matches against state sides were not possible (and uncertain value, when you consider England having played three before the 5-0 series loss in 2013-14). More difficult to justify is the disregard of county championship cricket as a worthwhile exercise more broadly, as shown by a young player's unproductive season.

On-Field Shortcomings and Philosophical Lack of Evolution

Only playing prepares 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 batting – harrowing as some of the decision-making has been – but an bowling attack that seems without a spearhead. No bowler has demonstrated the patience or control that the otherworldly Mitchell Starc and his support cast have displayed.

McCullum's free-spirit outlook was liberating during its initial year, an effective, well diagnosed solution to shake off the lethargy that preceded it. The frustration now comes in how it has seemingly not evolved past that point – the lack of an upgrade to the original software that has seen results decline to 14 wins and 14 losses from their last 30 Tests.

Player Spotlight and Selection Dilemmas

One such player is Jamie Smith, a talent, no question, but one who is being mercilessly targeted on both edges and missed two crucial opportunities with the gloves. It probably does not help when your counterpart, the Australian keeper, has just delivered a masterful display.

Going by the coach's words in the aftermath, England look likely to persist with Smith in Adelaide. The expectation – similar to the broader situation – is that a switch to a traditional Test setting unleashes his best, with Perth's bouncy pitch and the unfamiliar floodlit Test now in the past.

The alternative is to enact the plan stumbled across during the series win in New Zealand 12 months ago by shifting the batsman down to his preferred position as a busy No. 5 or 6, giving him the wicketkeeping duties, and picking a new No 3. Bethell scored runs for the Lions recently, or maybe Will Jacks could fulfil a similar role to Moeen Ali in 2023.

Ultimately, none of this is perfect, however Australia's better fundamentals having destroyed pre-series optimism and pushed the broader philosophy into the spotlight.