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The England head coach loathed the moniker Bazball the moment it emerged, deeming it reductive and perhaps foreseeing how it might be used as a weapon 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.

However the coach has contributed to the problem either. Following the gut-wrenching defeat at the Gabba, his insistence that, if anything, England were 'over-prepared' before the pink-ball match was akin to attempting to extinguish a rubbish fire with gasoline. It risks becoming his lasting legacy as England head coach if results do not take an upturn.

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

The truth, as ever, is more nuanced. 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 to Australia's three, due to their limited experience to the pink Kookaburra ball and the different lighting conditions.

The Debate of Preparation and Training

The coach's point about being "excessively ready" was that those additional training days were his decision – the instance he wavered in his conviction that minimal preparation is best. It meant a Test match's worth of mental energy was expended before they even took the field in the cauldron of Australia's stronghold. And though net practice are a chance to iron out skills, they can also become a comfort zone; zero consequence activity that mainly maintains the reflexes sharp.

Fixtures are congested such that pre-series state games were unavailable (with uncertain value, when you consider England playing three before the 5-0 series loss in 2013-14). What is harder to square is the dismissal of domestic red-ball cricket as a valuable experience in general, as shown by Jacob Bethell's wasted summer.

Match Deficiencies and Strategic Stagnation

Match practice alone hardens cricketers for the various scenarios they encounter, and it is in this area where England have so far been found lacking. The issue is not just with the batting – as poor as some of the decision-making has been – but an attack that seems leaderless. None has shown the persistence or control that the otherworldly Mitchell Starc and his teammates have delivered.

The coach's free-spirit outlook was freeing during its first 12 months, an effective, apt remedy to shake off the lethargy 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 decline to an even record from their most recent matches.

Player Spotlight and Team Dilemmas

Among them is Jamie Smith, a talent, undoubtedly, but one who is being mercilessly targeted on each side of the bat and missed two crucial opportunities with the gloves. The situation is not aided when your opposite number, Alex Carey, has just produced a masterful display.

Going by the coach's words after the match, England appear set to persist with Smith in Adelaide. The hope – as is the case – is that a return to a traditional Test setting unleashes his top form, with Perth's bouncy pitch and the unusual day-night format now out of the way.

Another option is to enact the plan stumbled across during the victorious series in New Zealand 12 months ago by moving 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 made some runs for the Lions over the weekend, or maybe Will Jacks could fulfil a similar role to Moeen Ali in 2023.

Ultimately, none of this is perfect, however Australia's superior basics having destroyed expectations and pushed the team's entire approach into the spotlight.