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The Journey of a Phenomenon is often characterized by specific steps.

1. The Big Idea

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

And so it goes. They’re getting ready to confront the system down in Brisbane. The gunships are circling. Smoke is rising from the sidelines. One individual, vulnerable, nervous, the phrase ATTACKING MINDSET displayed prominently as a statement, has come staggering through the lines and is taken aside with discretion to a different team at Derbyshire.

Do you recall the start, when the world was still young? The initial phase, of Bazball without brains.

2. Love-Bombing

Movement founders guarantee a fresh beginning, a brighter tomorrow, support, salvation together united in belief in the big idea.

How did it feel at first? A team united enjoying success. Body art. Forearms. Focus. Confident masculinity. Admittedly, The team will claim it’s not a real term, ironically since it’s not recognized, what exactly did I just watch?

However, everyone understands its essence. It’s the player playing a shot so outrageous it defies description. It’s the adrenaline of the captain in his final form, a demeanor suggesting: pensive Nordic god, beard made of wood, natural look, so authentically Modern Savage you half-expect to notice and see him playing at mid-off stripped to the waist and cradling a wild salmon.

It’s the opener often seen addressing the media, out there looking like a joyful figure in a waistcoat, saying stuff like we are actively deconstructing the orange. And yes, the vibe, initially, was only good energy.

3. Expansion Period

Development stage. Togetherness strengthened by rote learning of key phrases. These ideas are often illogical as a test of “true belief”.

Is it just me? The reaction, the fury, the sense of betrayal after the first Ashes Test defeat seems too strong, unwarranted. The performance was poor during the match, as is typical there. They were savaged while bowling for a couple of hours as the bowling and captaincy fell apart, carved around by the batsman playing aggressively but smarter, adaptive to conditions, a performer excelling with aura.

And now we have this the criticism, the frustration, the perception of the team as a failure. The opinion suggests that losing isn’t enough, they should be dismantled, to be purged, destroyed, defeated through sheer skill of Mitchell Starc’s movements, the simple basics of the bowler, marking successes with a bashful smile like he’s just been given a nice new fishing rod. What will this do to them?

4. Hate Bonding

Issues emerge from failures in the plan. Yet, mistakes are denied. It starts to feed on hostility externally.

The fact remains, half a week out from the second Test, we are at a critical juncture in the lifespan of this movement. They might succeed in the next Test in a blur of adrenal disruption. More likely, defeat could come swiftly. And if they do lose it seems we really might be entering the final stage.

Before that happens, a couple of points to consider about this. More than two years ago, at the start, of passion and hope, I wrote an article suggesting Bazball was a cult. People were very angry, which was helpful since it’s clear how to confirm lack of cult status is if supporters respond with anger rejecting criticism of its truths.

What has happened lately is just as interesting. Opposition to the style has turned into a movement. Social media is furious, critical analysts, shots of angry middle-aged travelling fans missing out on play, similar to investors demanding recourse.

Meanwhile, we have the wider backdrop of the host’s complex ingrained annoyance with the aggressive tourists, out there saying, your cherished traditions and have fostered and nurtured to distinguish yourselves from others, it’s just a joke after all.

And this is the real point. It’s all cults. The approach was a phenomenon as the game has its own culture. Or at least, the team has long been exclusive, a clique, an elite gathering, a closed world with centuries of opaque and ritualistic cult history defining it. It has long been where entry is limited. It’s the colonial game of the British, the early image-makers. And notably, the nation has its own culture, a series of esoteric hierarchies, a place that literally still has a king.

The team have been enclosed in this environment for years. In trying to escape from it, to foster positivity, they are simply replicating their own experience, forming a new circle, a limited community, however with 15 cool guys and a coach encouraging individuality as long as yourself is quite a lot like myself.

Live where your feet are. Confront risks. But no matter how fast and far you run, you remain stuck.

With this mind, now is the time to show understanding for Bazball, to acknowledge its merits, of which there are many. What is Bazball? Promoting liberation. Defying norms. Batting aggressively|Attacking with