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The England head coach despised the term Bazball since it was coined, viewing it as overly simplistic and perhaps anticipating how it might be weaponised down the line. Currently, down 2-0 in an away Ashes series that started with high hopes, it has become the butt of Australian jokes.

But McCullum has contributed to the problem either. After the crushing defeat at the Gabba, his claim that, if anything, England were 'too prepared' prior to the pink-ball match was like trying to put out a rubbish fire with petrol. It risks becoming his lasting legacy as England head coach if results do not improve.

On one level, you almost have to admire his commitment to the bit. As much as he says he block out outside criticism, he will have been all too aware of an England team often described as freewheeling and underprepared.

The truth, as always, is more nuanced. England enjoy golf just as much during their scheduled breaks as their opponents and they train just as much. Prior to the Gabba Test, they trained for longer, completing five days compared to Australia's three, due to their lack of exposure to the pink ball and the different lighting conditions.

The Question of Readiness and Practice

McCullum's point about being "over-prepared" was that those five extra 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 nets are a opportunity to refine skills, they can also become a safety blanket; low-pressure work that mainly maintains the reactions quick.

Schedules are congested such that pre-series state games were not possible (with no guarantee, as shown by England playing three before the 5-0 series loss in 2013-14). More difficult to justify is the dismissal of county championship cricket as a worthwhile exercise more broadly, as shown by a young player's unproductive season.

Match Shortcomings and Philosophical Lack of Evolution

Only playing hardens cricketers for the many situations they encounter, and it is here where England have so far fallen well short. The issue is not just with the bat – harrowing as some of the shot selection has been – but an attack that seems without a spearhead. None has shown the patience or discipline that the otherworldly Australian paceman and his teammates have displayed.

McCullum's unconventional outlook was liberating during its initial year, an effective, well diagnosed solution to shake off the torpor that came before. The frustration now stems from how it has seemingly failed to move beyond that initial phase – an absence of an upgrade to the original software that has seen form decline to an even record from their most recent matches.

Player Spotlight and Selection Dilemmas

Among them is Jamie Smith, a talent, undoubtedly, 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 counterpart, Alex Carey, has just produced a virtuoso performance.

Going by McCullum's words after the match, England appear set to persist with Smith in Adelaide. The expectation – as is the case – is that a switch to a more familiar Test setting unleashes his best, with Perth's trampoline surface and the unusual floodlit Test now in the past.

The alternative is to implement the plan discovered during the series win in New Zealand last year by shifting Ollie Pope down to his preferred position as a busy No. 5 or 6, 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 fulfil a similar role to the former spinner in 2023.

Ultimately, none of this is ideal, however Australia's better fundamentals having destroyed expectations and forced the broader philosophy into the spotlight.