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The Life Cycle of a Movement is often defined by clear stages.

1. The Big Idea

A dominant personality or leaders propose an innovative concept pledging a solution for alienated and vulnerable people.

So here we are. Preparations are underway to confront the system down in Brisbane. Pressure is mounting. Conflict emerges from the sidelines. A lone figure, vulnerable, shivering, the slogan POSITIVE INTENT written on his body as a symbol, has come staggering into view and is being led away with discretion to a different team at Derbyshire.

Do you ever miss the early days, when the world was still young? The initial phase, of pure instinct.

2. The Honeymoon Phase

Cult leaders guarantee a fresh beginning, a brighter tomorrow, love, salvation among a group with shared faith in the philosophy.

What did it represent back then? A team united feeling good. Tattoos. Muscles. Jawlines. Peak performance vibes. Admittedly, England’s players often say Bazball doesn’t actually exist, amusingly as it’s denied, what exactly did I just watch?

However, everyone understands its essence. It’s the batsman playing a shot so depraved it defies description. It’s the adrenaline of the captain in ultimate mode, a look that says: pensive Nordic god, rugged appearance, hair woven from beaver hide, truly contemporary you almost imagine to look down and notice he’s fielding at mid-off stripped to the waist and cradling a wild salmon.

It’s the opener continuing to have permission to talk in press conferences, resembling a happy little woodland creature smartly dressed, expressing thoughts like we’re breaking down traditions. And yes, the atmosphere, initially, was uplifting.

3. The Growth Phase

Development stage. Togetherness strengthened via memorization of the cult’s slogans. These ideas are often illogical as a test of “true belief”.

Does anyone else feel? The criticism, the outrage, the disappointment post-defeat feels overblown, overdone. The batting collapsed during the match, as is typical there. They were dominated defensively for a couple of hours as plans unraveled, outplayed by Travis Head batting like England but better, adjusting to the pitch, a performer excelling with aura.

And now we have this the pile-on, the anger, the sense of English Test cricket as a kind of abomination. The opinion suggests that England don’t just need to lose, they need to lose righteously, to be cleansed, destroyed, overwhelmed through sheer skill of Mitchell Starc’s movements, the conventional tactics of the bowler, out there celebrating achievements humbly like he’s just been given a rewarding prize. What impact will this have?

4. The Backlash Phase

Issues emerge because of mistakes. But the cult cannot admit errors. It starts to feed on hostility externally.

Ultimately, a few days before from the second Test, we’ve entered an intriguing moment in the journey of this movement. They might succeed in the next Test with bold tactics. Probably, failure may follow. And if they do lose it appears we really might be entering the decline.

Ahead of this, several aspects worth saying about this. In the past, during the initial excitement, of light and heat, I wrote an article suggesting Bazball was a cult. There was outrage, which was helpful because everyone knows how to confirm that it’s not a closed group is when its acolytes send hundreds of furiously one-eyed messages denying scrutiny of the beliefs.

The developments recently is just as interesting. Criticism of the approach has now become the cult. Online outrage is widespread, disappointed commentators, shots of angry middle-aged supporters abroad disappointed by the short match, similar to timeshare owners seeking justice.

Meanwhile, we have the wider backdrop of the opponent’s mixed deep-seated frustration at these weirdly passive-aggressive buccaneers, out there saying, hey, that thing you love and have developed as one way of separating yourself from the opposition, it’s just a joke after all.

Here lies the truth. Everything is a cult. The approach was a phenomenon since the sport itself is insular. Or at least, English cricket has always been a cult, a clique, an elite gathering, an insular community with a long history of opaque and ritualistic cult history defining it. This has always been where influence is guarded. It’s the British pastime of the nation, the early image-makers. And guess what, the country is a phenomenon, a system of unknown levels, a place that literally still has a king.

England’s cricketers have been isolated within this world since childhood. Attempting to break free, to build a better atmosphere, they are simply replicating their own experience, forming a new circle, an exclusive group, but now with a new team and a leader promoting authenticity 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.

Considering this, now is the time to offer compassion for the movement, to appreciate its good points, which are significant. What does it represent? Encouraging expression. Questioning traditions. Batting aggressively|Attacking with