• At 2-0 down, England are desperate for a win in Adelaide

• Coach says ‘kneejerk reactions’ are ‘not really our way’

The series is on the line and, in all likelihood, jobs with it. But for Brendon McCullum, the latter is irrelevant. The England head coach has instead backed an unchanged top seven to deliver a fightback in the third Ashes Test and flip a narrative that has already featured talk of a whitewash bubble up.

At 2-0 down with three to play, all wiggle room has disappeared for England. But talk of Ollie Pope potentially being dropped, or even Ben Stokes moving to No 3, was shot down by McCullum as his players resumed training in Adelaide on Sunday afternoon. No going back now was the message.