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The Life Cycle of a Cult tends to be defined by specific steps.

1. The Big Idea

A dominant personality or figureheads present an innovative concept that promises a solution for alienated and vulnerable people.

And so it goes. They’re getting ready to storm the compound down in Brisbane. The gunships are circling. Conflict emerges from within. A lone figure, vulnerable, shivering, the slogan POSITIVE INTENT displayed prominently in chicken blood, has stumbled into view and is being led away with discretion for a temporary assignment in county cricket.

Do you recall the beginning, when everything was fresh? The initial phase, of uninhibited aggression.

2. Love-Bombing

Movement founders offer a new start, a brighter tomorrow, camaraderie, redemption together united in belief in the big idea.

How did it feel back then? A team united feeling good. Tattoos. Strength. Focus. Elite male wellness energy. Admittedly, England’s players often say Bazball doesn’t actually exist, ironically because if it doesn’t exist, what exactly did I just watch?

But we know what it is. It’s the batsman playing a shot so outrageous it has to be pixelated. It’s the thrill of the captain at his peak, a look that says: focused titan, beard made of wood, hair woven from beaver hide, genuinely raw you half-expect to look down and notice he’s fielding at mid-off stripped to the waist holding a fish.

It’s the opener often seen to talk in press conferences, resembling a joyful figure smartly dressed, expressing thoughts like we’re challenging norms. And yes, the vibe, for a significant period, was only good energy.

3. The Growth Phase

Building period. Cohesion maintained through repetition of mantras. These beliefs may seem irrational as a loyalty check.

Is it just me? The reaction, the fury, the sense of betrayal post-defeat feels overblown, too much. The batting collapsed during the match, as is typical there. They were savaged defensively during a brief period when tactics failed, outplayed by Travis Head batting like England but better, adjusting to the pitch, an athlete shining with brilliance.

Currently, we see the pile-on, the frustration, the perception of the team as a kind of abomination. The consensus is that England don’t just need to lose, they should be dismantled, to be purged, obliterated, overwhelmed by the vengeful purity of Mitchell Starc’s movements, the simple basics of the veteran, out there celebrating his wickets humbly similar to getting a nice new fishing rod. What will this do to them?

4. The Backlash Phase

Challenges surface from failures in the plan. But the cult cannot admit errors. It starts to feed on anger towards critics.

In truth, a few days before from the second Test, we’ve entered a delicious point of tension in the story of this thing. They might succeed overseas with bold tactics. More likely, they could lose just as quickly. And if they do lose it appears we could be witnessing the final stage.

Prior to that, there are two things worth saying regarding this. Previously, during the initial excitement, of passion and hope, I wrote an article suggesting Bazball was a cult. There was outrage, which demonstrated because everyone knows the best way of proving something definitely isn’t a cult is if supporters respond with anger objecting to the questioning of its truths.

Recent events lately is just as interesting. Opposition to the style is now the trend. Online outrage is widespread, angry English pundits, pictures of upset followers overseas disappointed by the short match, like a room full of people wanting fairness.

On the other hand, we have the wider backdrop of the host’s complex more culturally hard-wired exasperation towards the unconventional visitors, claiming, your cherished traditions and have honed as part of your identity from the opposition, well, it’s all a bit of a gag in the end old boy.

This is the core issue. It’s all cults. The style was a trend since the sport itself is insular. Or rather, English cricket has always been a cult, a circle, a garden party, an insular community with two hundred years of ceremonial past behind it. This has always been where influence is guarded. It’s the British pastime of the nation, the pioneering brand. And guess what, the country is a phenomenon, a series of esoteric hierarchies, a place that literally still has a king.

England’s cricketers have been enclosed in this environment from a young age. In trying to escape from it, to build a better atmosphere, they are just repeating their upbringing, creating another a bubble, a limited community, but now with 15 cool guys and a coach encouraging individuality as long as yourself is quite a lot like myself.

Stay present. Confront risks. However much you change, you’re always basically in the same place.

With this mind, it is perhaps the moment to offer compassion for the approach, to acknowledge its merits, that are numerous. What does it represent? Encouraging expression. Challenging orthodoxies. Batting aggressively|Attacking with