🔗 Share this article

The Journey of a Phenomenon can be defined by distinct phases.

1. The Big Idea

An inspiring figure or figureheads introduce a new and transcendent idea pledging a panacea for disconnected individuals.

And so it goes. They’re getting ready to challenge the establishment overseas. Pressure is mounting. Conflict emerges from the out-houses. An isolated player, vulnerable, anxious, the slogan POSITIVE INTENT displayed prominently as a symbol, has stumbled from the field and is taken aside in secrecy towards an inconclusive loan stint at Derbyshire.

Remember the early days, when the world was still young? The days of Bazball 1.0, of pure instinct.

2. Love-Bombing

Team architects promise a reboot, optimism ahead, support, redemption among a group who all believe in the big idea.

How did it feel back then? Just men on a balcony enjoying success. Ink. Strength. Jawlines. Peak performance vibes. Oh sure, England’s players often say they don’t use the label, ironically since it’s not recognized, what did we see?

Yet it’s clear its essence. It’s Harry Brook executing a stroke so outrageous it has to be pixelated. It’s the excitement of the captain in his final form, a look that says: thoughtful warrior, rugged appearance, natural look, genuinely raw you half-expect to notice and find him positioned at mid-off bare-chested and cradling a wild salmon.

It’s the batsman often seen to talk in press conferences, appearing as a happy little woodland creature in a waistcoat, uttering phrases such as we’re breaking down traditions. And yes, the vibe, initially, was uplifting.

3. Expansion Period

Development stage. Togetherness strengthened through repetition of key phrases. These principles may seem irrational to prove commitment.

Does anyone else feel? The criticism, the fury, the disappointment post-defeat feels overblown, overdone. England batted badly in Perth, as history shows. They were savaged in the field during a brief period when tactics failed, outplayed by the opponent batting like England but better, adjusting to the pitch, a performer excelling with aura.

Now there is the pile-on, the anger, the sense of English Test cricket as a failure. The consensus is that losing isn’t enough, they must be humbled, to be scoured, obliterated, destroyed via traditional methods of the bowler’s action, the simple basics of the veteran, out there celebrating successes modestly like he’s just been given a pleasant gift. How will they respond?

4. The Backlash Phase

Problems arise because of mistakes. But the cult cannot admit errors. It starts to feed on anger towards critics.

The fact remains, half a week out from the second Test, we have now reached a delicious point of tension in the story of this approach. England could quite easily win in the next Test through aggressive play. Probably, defeat could come swiftly. And if they do lose it feels like we really might be entering the final stage.

Prior to that, several aspects worth saying regarding this. More than two years ago, during the initial excitement, of optimism and energy, I wrote an article suggesting Bazball was a cult. There was outrage, which demonstrated as it’s known how to confirm that it’s not a closed group is if supporters respond with anger rejecting criticism of its truths.

Recent events recently is just as interesting. Opposition to the style is now the trend. We have a uniformly angry internet, disappointed commentators, images of frustrated travelling fans disappointed by the short match, like a room full of investors demanding recourse.

Conversely, we have the wider backdrop of Australia’s more nuanced deep-seated frustration with the aggressive tourists, out there saying, hey, that thing you love and have honed as part of your identity from the opposition, it’s not serious in the end old boy.

And this is the real point. Everything is a cult. The approach was a phenomenon because cricket is a cult. Or at least, the team has long been exclusive, a circle, a garden party, an insular community with a long history of tradition and mystery defining it. It has long been a place where power and access are hoarded. It’s the British pastime of the nation, the pioneering brand. And notably, the country is a phenomenon, a structure of hidden ranks, a place that literally still has a king.

The team have been enclosed in this system for years. Attempting to break free, to foster positivity, they are just repeating their upbringing, building another enclosure, an exclusive group, but doing it this time with a modern squad and a mentor who wants you to be yourself as long as yourself is quite a lot like myself.

Stay present. Run towards the danger. But no matter how fast and far you run, things stay similar.

With this mind, it is perhaps the moment to offer compassion for the movement, to recognize its positives, of which there are many. What does it represent? Encouraging expression. Challenging orthodoxies. Batting aggressively|Attacking with