🔗 Share this article

The Life Cycle of a Movement tends to be marked by distinct phases.

1. The Big Idea

A charismatic leader or leaders introduce a revolutionary approach pledging a cure for disconnected individuals.

Thus we find ourselves. They’re getting ready to challenge the establishment in Australia. Tensions are rising. Signs of trouble appear from the out-houses. A lone figure, naked, shivering, the phrase ATTACKING MINDSET written on his body as a statement, has emerged from the field and is taken aside in secrecy for a temporary assignment elsewhere.

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

2. Love-Bombing

Cult leaders offer a fresh beginning, optimism ahead, camaraderie, success within a community united in belief in the big idea.

What did it represent back then? Just men on a balcony basking in glory. Body art. Strength. Focus. Elite male wellness energy. Oh sure, The squad insist Bazball doesn’t actually exist, ironically because if it doesn’t exist, what was that spectacle?

But we know the concept. It’s the batsman playing a shot so depraved it’s beyond belief. It’s the thrill of Ben Stokes at his peak, a look that says: thoughtful warrior, beard made of wood, natural look, truly contemporary you half-expect to notice and find him positioned on the ground bare-chested 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, expressing thoughts like we’re breaking down traditions. Certainly, the energy, for quite a long time, was uplifting.

3. A New Life

Building period. Cohesion maintained through repetition of key phrases. These ideas are often illogical to prove commitment.

Does anyone else feel? The reaction, the anger, the feeling of letdown following the initial loss seems too strong, overdone. England batted badly in Perth, as history shows. They were torn apart in the field for a couple of hours as plans unraveled, carved around by the opponent imitating their style effectively, adaptive to conditions, a man playing with aura.

Currently, we see the attacks, the anger, the sense of English Test cricket as a disgrace. The opinion suggests that defeat must be total, they need to lose righteously, to be scoured, obliterated, overwhelmed by the vengeful purity of Mitchell Starc’s movements, the conventional tactics of the bowler, marking achievements with a bashful smile like he’s just been given a nice new fishing rod. How will they respond?

4. External Conflict

Challenges surface due to setbacks. But the cult cannot admit errors. It starts to feed on hostility externally.

The fact remains, a few days before from the second Test, we have now reached a critical juncture in the journey of this thing. England could quite easily win overseas with bold tactics. Probably, defeat could come swiftly. In case of defeat it appears we may see the decline.

Ahead of this, several aspects worth saying on the topic. More than two years ago, back in those heady early days, of passion and hope, I wrote an article suggesting Bazball was a cult. Criticism followed, which demonstrated as it’s known the best way of proving something definitely isn’t a cult is if supporters respond with anger rejecting criticism of the beliefs.

Recent events in the last few days are fascinating. Opposition to the style has turned into a movement. Online outrage is widespread, critical analysts, pictures of upset travelling fans missing out on play, like a room full of investors demanding recourse.

On the other hand, we have the wider backdrop of Australia’s more nuanced more culturally hard-wired exasperation with the aggressive tourists, stating, your cherished traditions and have developed as part of your identity from others, it’s just a joke after all.

This is the core issue. It’s all cults. The style was a trend as the game has its own culture. In fact, the team has long been exclusive, a circle, an elite gathering, a closed world with a long history of tradition and mystery behind it. This has always been where influence is guarded. It’s the imperial sport of the nation, the original sports washers. And guess what, the nation has its own culture, a structure of hidden ranks, a monarchy still exists.

England’s cricketers have been isolated in this environment since childhood. In trying to escape from it, to create a less brutal environment, they are simply replicating their own experience, creating another a bubble, an exclusive group, but doing it this time with a new team and a coach promoting authenticity provided you conform.

Live where your feet are. Confront risks. However much you change, you remain stuck.

Reflecting on this, it might be appropriate to have some sympathy for the approach, to recognize its positives, which are significant. What is Bazball? Promoting liberation. Defying norms. Batting aggressively|Attacking with