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Brendon McCullum detested the term Bazball since it was coined, deeming it overly simplistic and perhaps anticipating how it might be used as a weapon down the line. Currently, down 2-0 in an Test series in Australia that began with great expectations, it has become the butt of Australian jokes.

However the coach has contributed to the problem either. Following the gut-wrenching defeat at the Gabba, his insistence that, if there was an issue, England were 'too prepared' prior to the day-night Test was like trying to put out a rubbish fire with petrol. It could become his lasting legacy as national coach if performances do not improve.

On one level, you almost have to admire his dedication to the philosophy. While McCullum claims to ignore outside criticism, he will have been acutely aware of an England team often described as freewheeling and lacking preparation.

The truth, as ever, is not so simple. England play as much golf during their necessary down time as their opponents and they train just as much. Before the Gabba Test, they did more, logging five days compared to Australia's three, due to their limited experience to the pink ball and the changes in seeing conditions.

The Debate of Readiness and Training

The coach's point about being "over-prepared" was that those five extra days were his call – the moment he wavered in his belief that less is more. It suggested a significant amount of mental energy was used up before they even stepped out in the intensity of Australia's stronghold. While net practice are a chance to iron out technique, they can also become a safety blanket; zero consequence activity that simply keeps the reflexes sharp.

Schedules are congested such that pre-series state games were unavailable (and no guarantee, when you consider England playing three before the whitewash in 2013-14). More difficult to justify is the disregard of county championship cricket as a valuable experience in general, as shown by Jacob Bethell's wasted summer.

On-Field Deficiencies and Strategic Stagnation

Only playing hardens 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 attack that seems without a spearhead. No bowler has shown the patience or control that the exceptional Mitchell Starc and his teammates have displayed.

The coach's unconventional approach was liberating during its initial year, an excellent, apt solution to eradicate the torpor that came before. The frustration now stems from how it has seemingly failed to move beyond that point – an absence of an upgrade 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

One such player is Jamie Smith, a gifted player, no question, but one who is being constantly tested on each side of the bat and has dropped two crucial opportunities as wicketkeeper. The situation is not aided when your opposite number, Alex Carey, has just produced a virtuoso performance.

Going by the coach's words in the aftermath, England appear set to persist with Smith in Adelaide. The hope – as is the case – is that a switch to a traditional Test setting triggers his best, with Perth's bouncy pitch and the unusual 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 more natural home as a active No. 5 or 6, handing him the gloves, and picking a new No 3. Bethell scored runs for the Lions recently, or perhaps an all-rounder could fulfil a similar role to the former spinner in 2023.

Ultimately, none of this is perfect, with Australia's superior basics having destroyed pre-series optimism and forced the team's entire approach into the harsh glare of scrutiny.