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The England head coach despised the moniker Bazball from its inception, deeming it reductive and perhaps anticipating how it could be used as a weapon in the future. Right now, down 2-0 in an Test series in Australia that started with great expectations, it has become the butt of Australian jokes.

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 '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 improve.

In a way, one must admire his commitment to the bit. While he says he block out external noise, he will have been all too aware of an England team increasingly characterised as freewheeling and lacking preparation.

The reality, as ever, is not so simple. England play as much golf during their scheduled breaks as their rivals and they practice equally hard. Prior to the Gabba Test, they did more, completing five days compared to Australia's three, given their lack of exposure to the pink Kookaburra ball and the different seeing conditions.

The Debate of Readiness and Practice

The coach's point about being "over-prepared" was that those five extra days were his decision – the instance he wavered in his conviction that minimal preparation is best. It suggested a Test match's worth of mental energy was used up before they even stepped out in the cauldron of Australia's fortress. While net practice are a opportunity to iron out technique, they can also become a safety blanket; zero consequence activity that simply maintains the reflexes sharp.

Schedules are tight such that pre-series state games were unavailable (with uncertain value, as shown by 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 valuable experience in general, as shown by a young player's unproductive season.

On-Field Deficiencies and Strategic Lack of Evolution

Match practice alone prepares cricketers for the many situations they encounter, and it is here where England have so far been found lacking. It is not only with the batting – as poor as some of the shot selection has been – but an bowling attack that seems leaderless. No bowler has shown the persistence or discipline that the exceptional Australian paceman and his support cast have displayed.

McCullum's unconventional outlook was freeing during its first 12 months, an excellent, 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 second phase to the original software that has seen results taper off to 14 wins and 14 losses from their last 30 Tests.

Player Spotlight and Team Dilemmas

Among them 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 as wicketkeeper. It probably does not help when your opposite number, Alex Carey, has just delivered a masterful display.

Going by the coach's comments in the aftermath, England appear set to persist with Smith in Adelaide. The hope – similar to the broader situation – is that a switch to a traditional match environment triggers his best, with Perth's trampoline surface and the unfamiliar floodlit Test now out of the way.

Another option is to implement the plan discovered during the victorious series in New Zealand last year by shifting the batsman down to his preferred position as a busy middle order player, handing him the gloves, and selecting a new No 3. A young contender scored runs for the Lions recently, or perhaps Will Jacks could fulfil a comparable function to Moeen Ali in 2023.

In the end, none of this is perfect, however Australia's superior basics having destroyed pre-series optimism and forced the broader philosophy into the harsh glare of scrutiny.