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The Life Cycle of a Cult tends to be marked by clear stages.

1. The Big Idea

A charismatic leader or figureheads present a new and transcendent idea that promises a solution for alienated and vulnerable people.

Thus we find ourselves. They’re getting ready to storm the compound in Australia. The gunships are circling. Signs of trouble appear from within. An isolated player, naked, anxious, the phrase ATTACKING MINDSET smeared across his chest as a statement, has stumbled through the lines and is being led away with discretion for a temporary assignment at Derbyshire.

Do you recall the start, when the world was still young? The era of early Bazball, of uninhibited aggression.

2. The Honeymoon Phase

Team architects guarantee a reboot, hope for a future, love, success among a group united in belief in the big idea.

What was this thing at first? Just men on a balcony basking in glory. Ink. Forearms. Jawlines. Confident masculinity. Admittedly, England’s players insist Bazball doesn’t actually exist, amusingly as it’s denied, what exactly did I just watch?

However, everyone understands the concept. It’s the player playing a shot so depraved it has to be pixelated. It’s the adrenaline of the leader at his peak, an expression conveying: focused titan, rugged appearance, natural look, truly contemporary you half-expect to glance over and notice he’s fielding on the ground shirtless embracing nature.

It’s Ben Duckett often seen addressing the media, resembling a joyful figure in a waistcoat, uttering phrases such as we’re challenging norms. Certainly, the energy, for a significant period, was uplifting.

3. Expansion Period

Building period. Cohesion maintained by rote learning of mantras. These principles can appear contradictory as a loyalty check.

Is it just me? The reaction, the fury, the sense of betrayal following the initial loss feels overblown, too much. The batting collapsed in Perth, as is typical there. They were dominated while bowling during a brief period as the bowling and captaincy fell apart, outplayed by the batsman playing aggressively but smarter, adjusting to the pitch, a performer excelling with aura.

And now we have this the criticism, the anger, the perception of the team as a kind of abomination. The consensus is that defeat must be total, they need to lose righteously, to be cleansed, obliterated, overwhelmed via traditional methods of the pace attack, the simple basics of the bowler, out there celebrating his wickets humbly similar to getting a nice new fishing rod. What impact will this have?

4. Hate Bonding

Issues emerge due to setbacks. But the cult cannot admit errors. It turns to anger towards critics.

The fact remains, half a week out the upcoming game, we have now reached an intriguing moment in the lifespan of this movement. England could quite easily win overseas with bold tactics. Probably, defeat could come swiftly. Should they fail it feels like we really might be entering the final stage.

Before that happens, there are two things worth saying on the topic. In the past, at the start, of passion and hope, I wrote an article suggesting Bazball was a cult. People were very angry, which demonstrated as it’s known the best way of proving that it’s not a closed group is when its acolytes respond with anger denying scrutiny of its truths.

Recent events in the last few days are equally notable. Criticism of the approach is now the trend. Social media is furious, angry English pundits, pictures of upset travelling fans disappointed by the short match, similar to people wanting fairness.

Meanwhile, there is the broader context of the host’s complex ingrained annoyance towards the unconventional visitors, out there saying, hey, that thing you love and have fostered and nurtured to distinguish yourselves from the opposition, it’s not serious ultimately.

And this is the real point. It’s all cults. The style was a trend as the game has its own culture. Or at least, the sport in England is closed, a clique, a garden party, an insular community with two hundred years of ceremonial past behind it. It has long been where influence is guarded. It’s the colonial game of the British, the early image-makers. And notably, Britain is itself a cult, a structure of hidden ranks, a place that literally still has a king.

The players have been sealed up in this system from a young age. Attempting to break free, to build a better atmosphere, they are just repeating their past, forming a new circle, an exclusive group, but doing it this time with a new team and a coach who wants you to be yourself if you fit the mold.

Focus on the moment. Run towards the danger. But no matter how fast and far you run, you’re always basically in the same place.

With this mind, it is perhaps the moment to have some sympathy for the movement, to appreciate its good points, which are significant. How to define it? Encouraging expression. Defying norms. Batting aggressively|Attacking with