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The Evolution of a Cult is often marked by distinct phases.

1. The Core Concept

A charismatic leader or leaders propose a new and transcendent idea pledging a solution for alienated and vulnerable people.

Thus we find ourselves. They’re getting ready to challenge the establishment overseas. Pressure is mounting. Smoke is rising from the out-houses. An isolated player, vulnerable, anxious, the words HIGH RELEASE POINT displayed prominently as a statement, has come staggering into view and is taken aside with discretion for a temporary assignment elsewhere.

Remember the early days, when optimism reigned? The era of early Bazball, of Bazball without brains.

2. The Honeymoon Phase

Cult leaders guarantee a fresh beginning, hope for a future, camaraderie, salvation together who all believe in the method.

What did it represent initially? A team united enjoying success. Body art. Strength. Determination. Peak performance vibes. Oh sure, The squad insist Bazball doesn’t actually exist, ironically since it’s not recognized, what was that spectacle?

But we know its essence. It’s the batsman attempting a move so outrageous it has to be pixelated. It’s the excitement of the leader in his final form, an expression conveying: thoughtful warrior, beard made of wood, untamed style, so authentically Modern Savage you almost imagine to notice and see him playing in the field bare-chested and cradling a wild salmon.

It’s the opener often seen speaking publicly, resembling a cheerful animal in a waistcoat, expressing thoughts like we’re challenging norms. Indeed, the atmosphere, for quite a long time, was only good energy.

3. Expansion Period

Development stage. Togetherness strengthened through repetition of the cult’s slogans. These principles can appear contradictory to prove commitment.

Does anyone else feel? The criticism, the anger, the sense of betrayal after the first Ashes Test defeat seems too strong, overdone. The batting collapsed during the match, as is typical there. They were savaged in the field in a short span when tactics failed, carved around by the batsman playing aggressively but smarter, adjusting to the pitch, an athlete shining with a kind of light around him.

And now we have this the attacks, the frustration, the perception of the team as a kind of abomination. The feeling seems to be that England don’t just need to lose, they must be humbled, to be scoured, obliterated, overwhelmed via traditional methods of the pace attack, the conventional tactics of the bowler, marking achievements humbly like he’s just been given a rewarding prize. What will this do to them?

4. Hate Bonding

Problems arise because of mistakes. But the cult cannot admit errors. It begins to thrive on anger towards critics.

In truth, approaching the next match, we are at a critical juncture in the story of this movement. 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 may see the final stage.

Ahead of this, several aspects to note about this. More than two years ago, at the start, of passion and hope, a column appeared suggesting Bazball was a cult. Criticism followed, which proved the point because everyone knows how to confirm something definitely isn’t a cult is when its acolytes send hundreds of furiously one-eyed messages rejecting criticism of the philosophy.

Recent events recently is just as interesting. Opposition to the style has now become the cult. We have a uniformly angry internet, disappointed commentators, pictures of upset travelling fans missing out on play, similar to people wanting fairness.

Conversely, exists the larger scene of the opponent’s mixed more culturally hard-wired exasperation towards the unconventional visitors, out there saying, hey, that thing you love and have honed as one way of separating yourself from the opposition, it’s not serious ultimately.

And this is the real point. All movements are similar. Bazball was a cult as the game has its own culture. Or at least, English cricket has always been a cult, a circle, an elite gathering, a closed world with two hundred years of ceremonial past supporting it. Historically, this was a place where power and access are hoarded. It’s the colonial game of the British, the early image-makers. And guess what, Britain is itself a cult, a series of esoteric hierarchies, a monarchy still exists.

The team have been sealed up in this environment from a young age. Seeking change, to create a less brutal environment, they are simply replicating their own experience, building another enclosure, an exclusive group, however with a new team and a mentor encouraging individuality if you fit the mold.

Live where your feet are. Embrace challenges. However much you change, things stay similar.

Reflecting on this, now is the time to show understanding for the approach, to recognize its positives, of which there are many. What is Bazball? Creating a sense of freedom. Defying norms. Batting aggressively|Attacking with