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The Life Cycle of a Phenomenon can be marked by clear stages.

1. The Grand Vision

A dominant personality or coaches propose a new and transcendent idea offering a solution for struggling players.

Thus we find ourselves. Preparations are underway to challenge the establishment down in Brisbane. The gunships are circling. Conflict emerges from the out-houses. An isolated player, naked, anxious, the slogan POSITIVE INTENT displayed prominently in chicken blood, has stumbled from the field and is removed under a blanket to a different team in county cricket.

Remember the start, when everything was fresh? The days of Bazball 1.0, of pure instinct.

2. Love-Bombing

Movement founders guarantee a fresh beginning, optimism ahead, support, salvation together with shared faith in the big idea.

What was this thing initially? A team united enjoying success. Body art. Forearms. Focus. Confident masculinity. Of course, The squad often say they don’t use the label, which is funny because if it doesn’t exist, what was that spectacle?

Yet it’s clear its essence. It’s the player executing a stroke so unconventional it’s beyond belief. It’s the thrill of the captain in ultimate mode, an expression conveying: pensive Nordic god, strong features, untamed style, so authentically Modern Savage you almost imagine to notice and see him playing at mid-off stripped to the waist and cradling a wild salmon.

It’s the batsman often seen to talk in press conferences, out there looking like a happy little woodland creature smartly dressed, saying stuff like we are actively deconstructing the orange. Indeed, the vibe, initially, was uplifting.

3. The Growth Phase

Growth phase. Togetherness strengthened through repetition of key phrases. These principles may seem irrational to prove commitment.

Am I alone? The criticism, the anger, the feeling of letdown post-defeat appears excessive, unwarranted. The performance was poor in Perth, as history shows. They were torn apart defensively in a short span as plans unraveled, carved around by the batsman imitating their style effectively, responsive to the situation, an athlete shining with brilliance.

Now there is the attacks, the frustration, the view of the sport as a disgrace. The consensus is that defeat must be total, they should be dismantled, to be scoured, flame-throwered, overwhelmed through sheer skill of the bowler’s action, the simple basics of the bowler, seen enjoying achievements with a bashful smile as if receiving a nice new fishing rod. What will this do to them?

4. Hate Bonding

Issues emerge because of mistakes. But the cult cannot admit errors. It turns to anger towards critics.

In truth, a few days before the upcoming game, we have now reached a delicious point of tension in the journey of this thing. England could quite easily win in the next Test with bold tactics. More likely, they could lose just as quickly. In case of defeat it appears we could be witnessing the final stage.

Prior to that, several aspects worth saying about this. Previously, back in those heady early days, of optimism and energy, I wrote an article labeling it a movement. People were very angry, which demonstrated because everyone knows a method to show lack of cult status is when its acolytes send hundreds of furiously one-eyed messages rejecting criticism of the philosophy.

Recent events lately is just as interesting. Criticism of the approach has now become the cult. Social media is furious, disappointed commentators, images of frustrated travelling fans cheated out of three days of cricket, similar to timeshare owners seeking justice.

On the other hand, there is the broader context of Australia’s more nuanced more culturally hard-wired exasperation at these weirdly passive-aggressive buccaneers, out there saying, the methods you value and have fostered and nurtured as one way of separating yourself from the opposition, it’s just a joke in the end old boy.

And this is the real point. It’s all cults. The style was a trend as the game has its own culture. Or rather, the sport in England is closed, a group, a garden party, a closed world with two hundred years of tradition and mystery supporting it. It has long been where influence is guarded. It’s the colonial game of the nation, the early image-makers. And notably, Britain is itself a cult, a system of unknown levels, a royal family remains.

England’s cricketers have been isolated in this system from a young age. In trying to escape from it, to create a less brutal environment, they are mirroring their past, creating another a bubble, a limited community, but now with a modern squad and a mentor who wants you to be yourself provided you conform.

Live where your feet are. 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 might be appropriate to have some sympathy for Bazball, to acknowledge its merits, of which there are many. What does it represent? Encouraging expression. Defying norms. Batting aggressively|Attacking with