🔗 Share this article

The Life Cycle of a Cult tends to be defined by specific steps.

1. The Big Idea

A charismatic leader or figureheads present a revolutionary approach offering a solution for struggling players.

And so it goes. Preparations are underway to challenge the establishment overseas. Pressure is mounting. Smoke is rising from the sidelines. One individual, vulnerable, shivering, the slogan POSITIVE INTENT displayed prominently in chicken blood, has stumbled through the lines and is being led away with discretion for a temporary assignment in county cricket.

Remember the start, when optimism reigned? The days of Bazball 1.0, of Bazball without brains.

2. Initial Adoration

Movement founders offer a fresh beginning, optimism ahead, love, success within a community who all believe in the philosophy.

What did it represent at first? Just men on a balcony basking in glory. Body art. Forearms. Focus. Elite male wellness energy. Oh sure, England’s players insist it’s not a real term, which is funny because if it doesn’t exist, what was that spectacle?

However, everyone understands what it is. It’s Harry Brook playing a shot so unconventional it’s beyond belief. It’s the thrill of Ben Stokes in his final form, an expression conveying: focused titan, beard made of wood, hair woven from beaver hide, genuinely raw you wouldn’t be surprised to glance over and find him positioned at mid-off bare-chested embracing nature.

It’s the batsman still being allowed addressing the media, appearing as a happy little woodland creature in a waistcoat, uttering phrases such as we’re breaking down traditions. Certainly, the atmosphere, for a significant period, was uplifting.

3. A New Life

Growth phase. Unity enforced by rote learning of the cult’s slogans. These beliefs are often illogical to prove commitment.

Am I alone? The reaction, the anger, the feeling of letdown after the first Ashes Test defeat feels overblown, overdone. The performance was poor during the match, as is typical there. They were savaged while bowling in a short span as plans unraveled, manipulated by the batsman playing aggressively but smarter, adjusting to the pitch, a performer excelling with a kind of light around him.

Currently, we see the criticism, the rage, the sense of English Test cricket as a failure. The opinion suggests that defeat must be total, they need to lose righteously, to be cleansed, flame-throwered, overwhelmed through sheer skill of Mitchell Starc’s movements, the simple basics of the veteran, out there celebrating successes with a bashful smile like he’s just been given a nice new fishing rod. How will they respond?

4. External Conflict

Issues emerge due to setbacks. However, faults are ignored. It starts to feed on anger towards critics.

Ultimately, a few days before the next match, we’ve entered an intriguing moment in the lifespan of this approach. They might succeed in the next Test with bold tactics. More likely, they could lose just as quickly. Should they fail it feels like we really might be entering the decline.

Ahead of this, there are two things worth saying on the topic. More than two years ago, back in those heady early days, of optimism and energy, I wrote an article labeling it a movement. Criticism followed, which was helpful since it’s clear a method to show lack of cult status is when its acolytes respond with anger denying scrutiny of its truths.

The developments recently are equally notable. Criticism of the approach has now become the cult. Online outrage is widespread, disappointed commentators, pictures of upset supporters abroad missing out on play, reminiscent of timeshare owners seeking justice.

Meanwhile, we have the wider backdrop of the host’s complex deep-seated frustration with the aggressive tourists, stating, your cherished traditions and have honed to distinguish yourselves from others, it’s not serious ultimately.

Here lies the truth. It’s all cults. The style was a trend as the game has its own culture. Or rather, English cricket has always been a cult, a group, a private event, an insular community with a long history of opaque and ritualistic cult history behind it. It has long been where influence is guarded. It’s the British pastime of England, 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 enclosed in this environment for years. In trying to escape from it, to foster positivity, they are mirroring their past, forming a new circle, a limited community, however with a modern squad and a mentor who wants you to be yourself provided you conform.

Focus on the moment. Embrace challenges. Despite efforts, you’re always basically in the same place.

Reflecting on this, now is the time to have some sympathy for the approach, to acknowledge its merits, which are significant. What is Bazball? Creating a sense of freedom. Challenging orthodoxies. Batting aggressively|Attacking with