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The Life Cycle of a Movement is often marked by distinct phases.

1. The Grand Vision

A dominant personality or leaders present a revolutionary approach offering a cure for struggling players.

So here we are. Preparations are underway to confront the system overseas. Tensions are rising. Conflict emerges from within. One individual, naked, anxious, the slogan POSITIVE INTENT smeared across his chest in chicken blood, has stumbled from the field and is taken aside in secrecy for a temporary assignment at Derbyshire.

Do you ever miss the start, when optimism reigned? The days of Bazball 1.0, of uninhibited aggression.

2. Love-Bombing

Movement founders offer a new start, a brighter tomorrow, love, success within a community with shared faith in the big idea.

What did it represent at first? Just men on a balcony feeling good. Body art. Strength. Jawlines. Elite male wellness energy. Admittedly, The squad often say it’s not a real term, which is funny since it’s not recognized, what was that spectacle?

But we know the concept. It’s the batsman executing a stroke so depraved it defies description. It’s the adrenaline of the captain in ultimate mode, an expression conveying: focused titan, rugged appearance, natural look, truly contemporary you half-expect to glance over and find him positioned on the ground shirtless and cradling a wild salmon.

It’s Ben Duckett continuing to have permission addressing the media, appearing as a joyful figure smartly dressed, saying stuff like we are actively deconstructing the orange. And yes, the vibe, for quite a long time, was only good energy.

3. Expansion Period

Development stage. Togetherness strengthened through repetition of mantras. These principles are often illogical to prove commitment.

Am I alone? The criticism, the fury, the disappointment after the first Ashes Test defeat appears excessive, overdone. The batting collapsed during the match, as they often do in Australia. They were savaged defensively in a short span as plans unraveled, carved around by the batsman playing aggressively but smarter, adjusting to the pitch, a performer excelling with a kind of light around him.

Now there is the attacks, the anger, the sense of English Test cricket as a disgrace. The feeling seems to be that losing isn’t enough, they must be humbled, to be purged, destroyed, overwhelmed via traditional methods of the bowler’s action, the low-fi orthodoxies of the bowler, seen enjoying his wickets humbly similar to getting a rewarding prize. How will they respond?

4. Hate Bonding

Challenges surface due to setbacks. But the cult cannot admit errors. It turns to hatred of the outside world.

In truth, half a week out from the second Test, we’ve entered a delicious point of tension in the lifespan of this movement. England could quite easily win in the next Test through aggressive play. Probably, failure may follow. Should they fail it appears we could be witnessing the decline.

Before that happens, a couple of points to note about this. In the past, back in those heady early days, of optimism and energy, a column appeared calling it a phenomenon. Criticism followed, which proved the point because everyone knows the best way of proving lack of cult status is should followers respond with anger denying scrutiny of the beliefs.

The developments recently is just as interesting. Criticism of the approach has now become the cult. Social media is furious, angry English pundits, shots of angry middle-aged travelling fans cheated out of three days of cricket, similar to investors demanding recourse.

Conversely, exists the larger scene of the opponent’s mixed deep-seated frustration with the aggressive tourists, stating, your cherished traditions and have developed as one way of separating yourself from the opposition, well, it’s all a bit of a gag in the end old boy.

And this is the real point. It’s all cults. The approach was a phenomenon because cricket is a cult. Or at least, the sport in England is closed, a circle, a private event, an insular community with two hundred years of ceremonial past defining it. Historically, this was a place where power and access are hoarded. It’s the imperial sport of the British, the original sports washers. And guess what, Britain is itself a cult, a system of unknown levels, a royal family remains.

The team have been sealed up in this environment from a young age. In trying to escape from it, to create a less brutal environment, they are mirroring their upbringing, creating another a bubble, a closed circle, but now with a modern squad and a leader who wants you to be yourself if you fit the mold.

Live where your feet are. Embrace challenges. Despite efforts, you’re always basically in the same place.

With this mind, it is perhaps the moment to offer compassion for Bazball, to recognize its positives, of which there are many. What is Bazball? Promoting liberation. Challenging orthodoxies. Batting aggressively|Attacking with