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Brendon McCullum loathed the term Bazball the moment it emerged, viewing it as overly simplistic and perhaps anticipating how it might be weaponised down the line. Right now, down 2-0 in an away Ashes series that began with great expectations, it has become the butt of mockery from Australia.

But the coach has not helped himself either. After the gut-wrenching loss at the Gabba, his insistence that, if anything, England were 'too prepared' before the day-night Test was like trying to put out a rubbish fire with gasoline. It could become his lasting legacy as national coach if performances do not take an upturn.

In a way, one must admire his commitment to the bit. While he says he ignore external noise, he will have been acutely aware of an England team often described as freewheeling and underprepared.

The reality, as ever, is not so simple. England enjoy golf just as much during their scheduled breaks as their rivals and they train just as much. Prior to the Gabba Test, they did more, logging five days compared to Australia's three, due to their lack of exposure to the pink ball and the changes in seeing conditions.

The Debate of Preparation and Training

The coach's point about being "over-prepared" was that those additional training days were his decision – the moment he wavered in his belief that less is more. It meant a Test match's worth of mental energy was used up before they even stepped out in the intensity of Australia's fortress. And though net practice are a opportunity to refine skills, they can also become a comfort zone; low-pressure work that mainly keeps the reflexes sharp.

Schedules are congested such that pre-series state games were unavailable (with no guarantee, as shown by England playing three before the 5-0 series loss in 2013-14). What is harder to square is the disregard of domestic red-ball cricket as a worthwhile exercise more broadly, evidenced by a young player's unproductive season.

Match Shortcomings and Strategic Lack of Evolution

Only playing prepares cricketers for the various scenarios they walk out to face, and it is in this area where England have thus far fallen well short. It is not only 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 control that the otherworldly Mitchell Starc and his teammates have delivered.

The coach's free-spirit outlook was freeing during its initial year, an excellent, apt solution to eradicate the lethargy that preceded it. The disappointment now comes in how it has apparently not evolved past that point – the lack of an second phase to the initial philosophy that has seen results taper off to an even record from their most recent matches.

Squad 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 has dropped two crucial opportunities with the gloves. The situation is not aided when your opposite number, the Australian keeper, has just produced a masterful performance.

Based on the coach's words 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 trampoline surface and the unusual floodlit Test now in the past.

The alternative is to enact the plan discovered during the victorious series in New Zealand last year by shifting Ollie Pope down to his more natural home as a active middle order player, handing him the gloves, and selecting a fresh face at first drop. A young contender scored runs for the Lions recently, or perhaps an all-rounder could perform a comparable function to the former spinner in 2023.

In the end, none of this is perfect, with Australia's superior basics having shattered expectations and pushed the broader philosophy into the harsh glare of scrutiny.