🔗 Share this article

Brendon McCullum detested the moniker Bazball from its inception, viewing it as overly simplistic and maybe foreseeing how it might be weaponised in the future. Currently, down 2-0 in an Test series in Australia that began with high hopes, it has turned into the subject of Australian jokes.

But the coach has not helped himself either. After the crushing defeat at the Gabba, his claim that, if there was an issue, England were 'too prepared' before the pink-ball match was like attempting to extinguish a rubbish fire with petrol. It risks becoming his epitaph as England head coach if results do not take an upturn.

In a way, you almost have to admire his commitment to the bit. As much as McCullum claims to block out external noise, he will have been acutely aware of an England team often described as carefree and underprepared.

The reality, as ever, is more nuanced. England play as much golf during their necessary down time as their rivals and they practice equally hard. Before the Gabba Test, they trained for longer, completing five days to Australia's three, due to their limited experience to the pink ball and the different seeing conditions.

The Debate of Preparation and Training

McCullum's point about being "excessively ready" was that those additional training days were his call – the instance he blinked in his conviction that less is more. It suggested a significant amount of focus was used up before they even stepped out in the cauldron of Australia's fortress. And though nets are a chance to refine skills, they can also become a comfort zone; low-pressure work that mainly keeps the reactions quick.

Schedules are tight such that pre-series state games were not possible (with uncertain value, 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 valuable experience more broadly, evidenced by Jacob Bethell's unproductive season.

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 thus far fallen well short. It is not only with the batting – harrowing as some of the shot selection has been – but an bowling attack that seems without a spearhead. No bowler has demonstrated the persistence or control that the exceptional Mitchell Starc and his teammates have displayed.

McCullum's free-spirit approach was freeing during its initial year, an excellent, apt solution to eradicate the lethargy that came before. The frustration now comes in how it has seemingly failed to move beyond that initial phase – the lack of an upgrade to the original software that has seen form taper off to 14 wins and 14 losses from their most recent matches.

Player Spotlight and Team Dilemmas

Among them is the wicketkeeper-batter, a gifted player, undoubtedly, but one who is being mercilessly targeted on each side of the bat and has dropped two key chances as wicketkeeper. The situation is not aided when your counterpart, Alex Carey, has just delivered a virtuoso display.

Based on the coach's words in the aftermath, England appear set to keep the faith with Smith in Adelaide. The expectation – similar to the broader situation – is that a switch to a traditional match environment unleashes his top form, with Perth's bouncy pitch and the unusual floodlit Test now in the past.

The alternative is to enact the plan discovered during the victorious series in New Zealand 12 months ago by shifting Ollie Pope down to his more natural home as a active No. 5 or 6, giving him the gloves, and picking a new No 3. Bethell made some runs for the Lions recently, or maybe an all-rounder could perform a similar role to Moeen Ali in 2023.

Ultimately, these changes is perfect, with Australia's superior basics having shattered expectations and forced the team's entire approach into the harsh glare of scrutiny.