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The England head coach detested the term Bazball since it was coined, considering it reductive and perhaps anticipating how it might be used as a weapon in the future. Currently, down 2-0 in an Test series in Australia that began with great expectations, it has become the butt of mockery from Australia.

But McCullum has not helped himself either. Following the crushing loss at the Gabba, his claim that, if anything, England were 'over-prepared' before the day-night Test was akin to trying to put out a rubbish fire with petrol. It could become his epitaph as England head 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 ignore outside criticism, he must have been acutely aware of an England team increasingly characterised as freewheeling and underprepared.

The truth, as ever, is not so simple. England enjoy golf just as much during their necessary down time as their rivals and they practice equally hard. Prior to the Gabba Test, they trained for longer, 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 Readiness and Practice

McCullum's point about being "over-prepared" was that those additional training days were his decision – the moment he blinked in his conviction that less is more. It suggested a Test match's worth of focus was expended before they even stepped out in the cauldron of Australia's stronghold. And though net practice are a chance to iron out technique, they can also become a safety blanket; zero consequence work that simply maintains the reactions quick.

Fixtures 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). What is harder to square is the disregard of county championship cricket as a worthwhile exercise in general, evidenced by a young player's wasted summer.

On-Field Shortcomings and Philosophical Lack of Evolution

Match practice alone prepares cricketers for the many situations they walk out to face, and it is here where England have thus far fallen well short. It is not only with the bat – as poor as some of the shot selection has been – but an attack that seems leaderless. None has demonstrated the persistence or discipline that the exceptional Mitchell Starc and his support cast have delivered.

McCullum's free-spirit outlook was liberating during its initial year, an effective, well diagnosed solution to shake off the torpor that preceded it. The disappointment now comes in how it has seemingly not evolved past that initial phase – an absence of an upgrade to the original software that has seen results taper off to an even record from their most recent matches.

Player Spotlight and Team Decisions

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 with the gloves. The situation is not aided when your opposite number, the Australian keeper, has just delivered a virtuoso performance.

Going by McCullum's words after the match, England look likely to keep the faith with Smith in Adelaide. The expectation – as is the case – is that a return to a traditional match environment triggers his best, with Perth's trampoline surface and the unfamiliar floodlit Test now in the past.

Another option is to enact the plan stumbled across during the series win in New Zealand last year by moving Ollie Pope down to his more natural home as a busy middle order player, handing him the wicketkeeping duties, and selecting a new No 3. Bethell scored runs for the Lions recently, or perhaps an all-rounder could fulfil a similar role to Moeen Ali in 2023.

Ultimately, these changes is ideal, however Australia's better fundamentals having destroyed pre-series optimism and forced the team's entire approach into the harsh glare of scrutiny.