Aussie cricket great claims England coach Brendon McCullum could be SACKED if the Bazballers continue to do one thing

Australian cricket legend Ian Healy has sensationally claimed England coach Brendon McCullum could be sacked if the tourists fail to bounce back from their dismal eight-wicket defeat in Perth and lose the Ashes by a significant margin.

While Bazball has produced some exhilarating cricket in the past, the aggressive and fearless style of play has copped heavy criticism, with England letting a commanding 99-run lead with nine wickets in hand slip through their fingers at lunch on Day Two of the first Test.

Travis Head would later arrive at the crease to snatch the game away from the tourists, smashing an epic century off a mere 69 deliveries.

The series has been touted as one of England's best chances to win an Ashes series Down Under, but according to Healy, if England don't alter their game plan, they are on track to suffer a heavy defeat, which could lead to McCullum's axing.

'The coach would go first before the captain [Ben Stokes], because he's a world-class player,' the former Test keeper told SEN.

'He will be performing - even if they are going down that badly. I think the coach has got to go because they've just outright flat batted any advice from others that know the history of the game and what you should try in certain conditions and moments.'

On Saturday, England were bowled out in a little more than 18 overs, while key top-order stars, Ollie Pope, Harry Brook and Joe Root were all dismissed for no runs in the space of five deliveries.

'They've taken it upon themselves to do it this way and if it doesn't work, they will be in trouble. If you want to play this way, you'd want to get better at it,' Healy, who amassed 4366 Test runs for Australia between 1988 and 1999, said.

'You're up against the conditions, a good Australian bowling attack and history.

'You have to have a bit of ticker and a bit of common sense in amongst what they're doing. If not, they're going to get hurt.

'If they go down badly, whether that's 4-1, 4-0 or 5-0, look out.'

England have been scrutinised by former captains Michael Vaughan and Ian Botham in the build-up to the series for their preparations, with the side choosing to play a warm-up match at Lilac Hill, which has a much slower wicket than the one at the Perth Stadium. It even led to a war of words between Vaughan and Stokes, with the England skipper branding Vaughan and Botham 'has-beens'.

After the Test, England have snubbed the chance to play in a pink-ball warm-up match in Canberra against the Australian Prime Minister's XI ahead of the day-night Test in Brisbane - a move which has again infuriated several former greats, with Vaughan branding it 'amateurish'.

There were hopes England would send some of their batters to the Capital Territory to play in the match, but McCullum reasoned that it was more beneficial for the team to stick together following the first Test. 

Healy added that he was also stunned by how Ben Stokes' side has dismissed the views of the former pros.

'It's quite incredible that they are dismissing so many well-credentialed people. Michael Vaughan came out and did it in Australia,' he added.

'The last time they were in Australia, they gave themselves a month of preparation, not two weeks on a club wicket.'

Botham has also launched a brutal attack on Bazball, agreeing with Healy that the series could end up being a whitewash if England don't tweak their game plan.

'It was horrendous, there's no other word for it,' Botham told PA.

'England need to fire up and fire up quickly. I'm fed up of hearing, 'this is the way we play'. If I hear it once more, I think I'll throw something at the television.

'If that's the way you play, you might as well go home now because it's going to be 5-0. They probably won't like me saying that but they need to get their heads around it. I want more pride when I see people pulling that sweater on.'

It is an interesting comment from Botham who is well remembered for his brazen and fearless attacking brand of cricket.

But Botham has urged England to be more patient and to be more conservative when they next come up agianst Australia at The Gabba next Thursday.

'Maybe we need to rethink our tactics. You're not going to smash these Australian bowlers around all the time,' he said.

'Be selective, be sensible. Pull your horns in a little bit. When I did it I got myself in first. They've got four more Tests to get it right and let's hope they do because if they go down again, it's gone.' 

Despite going 0-1 down in the series, McCullum is urging England fans to 'keep the faith'. 

'We know how big this series is,' said McCullum. 'We know how many eyeballs are on it and how disappointed the fans will be. We're incredibly disappointed ourselves.

'We're better than what we showed and we look forward to the next opportunity.'

He added: 'Keep the faith.

'Sometimes we get beaten and it looks pretty ugly, but there are times when having that type of mentality allows us to still believe in our abilities when we step out to play.

'There are times we don't get it right, but we have to believe in what we believe in because it gives us the best chance. Just because we are one down in the series doesn't change what we believe in.

'We have to stay calm, stay together, and plot our way back into this series, as we have done before.'