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

1. The Grand Vision

An inspiring figure or coaches propose a revolutionary approach pledging a cure for alienated and vulnerable people.

Thus we find ourselves. Plans are in motion to challenge the establishment in Australia. Tensions are rising. Conflict emerges from the sidelines. One individual, naked, shivering, the slogan POSITIVE INTENT displayed prominently as a statement, has come staggering through the lines and is being led away under a blanket to a different team in county cricket.

Do you ever miss the beginning, when optimism reigned? The era of early Bazball, of uninhibited aggression.

2. Love-Bombing

Team architects offer a reboot, hope for a future, love, redemption among a group united in belief in the method.

How did it feel at first? A team united feeling good. Ink. Forearms. Determination. Peak performance vibes. Oh sure, England’s players will claim Bazball doesn’t actually exist, amusingly as it’s denied, what did we see?

Yet it’s clear the concept. It’s Harry Brook attempting a move so unconventional it has to be pixelated. It’s the excitement of Ben Stokes at his peak, a look that says: focused titan, beard made of wood, untamed style, genuinely raw you half-expect to look down and see him playing at mid-off bare-chested holding a fish.

It’s Ben Duckett often seen speaking publicly, appearing as a joyful figure formally attired, saying stuff like we’re breaking down traditions. Indeed, the energy, for a significant period, was only good energy.

3. The Growth Phase

Building period. Unity enforced by rote learning of key phrases. These principles are often illogical to prove commitment.

Is it just me? The reaction, the outrage, the disappointment following the initial loss appears excessive, too much. The performance was poor on the field, as is typical there. They were savaged while bowling for a couple of hours as the bowling and captaincy fell apart, carved around by the batsman imitating their style effectively, adaptive to conditions, an athlete shining with brilliance.

Currently, we see the attacks, the rage, the view of the sport as a kind of abomination. The feeling seems to be that losing isn’t enough, they need to lose righteously, to be scoured, flame-throwered, overwhelmed via traditional methods of the pace attack, the conventional tactics of Scott Boland, marking achievements with a bashful smile as if receiving a rewarding prize. What impact will this have?

4. The Backlash Phase

Issues emerge due to setbacks. Yet, mistakes are denied. It begins to thrive on hostility externally.

In truth, a few days before from the second Test, we are at an intriguing moment in the story of this movement. England could quite easily win overseas through aggressive play. Probably, they could lose just as quickly. And if they do lose it appears we may see the death cult phase.

Before that happens, several aspects to note about this. Previously, during the initial excitement, of optimism and energy, an piece was published labeling it a movement. There was outrage, which was helpful as it’s known a method to show something definitely isn’t a cult is if supporters send hundreds of furiously one-eyed messages denying scrutiny of the beliefs.

The developments recently are equally notable. Criticism of the approach has now become the cult. Online outrage is widespread, disappointed commentators, shots of angry middle-aged supporters abroad cheated out of three days of cricket, similar to timeshare owners seeking justice.

On the other hand, we have the wider backdrop of the opponent’s mixed ingrained annoyance with the aggressive tourists, out there saying, hey, that thing you love and have developed as one way of separating yourself culturally from us, well, it’s all a bit of a gag after all.

Here lies the truth. It’s all cults. The style was a trend because cricket is a cult. In fact, English cricket has always been a cult, a clique, an elite gathering, a restricted environment with centuries of opaque and ritualistic cult history supporting it. Historically, this was a place where power and access are hoarded. It’s the British pastime of England, the early image-makers. And guess what, Britain is itself a cult, a structure of hidden ranks, a monarchy still exists.

The team have been enclosed in this environment since childhood. Seeking change, to foster positivity, they are simply replicating their own experience, forming a new circle, a closed circle, but now with 15 cool guys and a leader who wants you to be yourself as long as yourself is quite a lot like myself.

Live where your feet are. Run towards the danger. However much you change, things stay similar.

Reflecting on this, now is the time to have some sympathy for the approach, to acknowledge its merits, of which there are many. What is Bazball? Encouraging expression. Challenging orthodoxies. Batting aggressively|Attacking with