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

1. The Big Idea

A charismatic leader or figureheads introduce an innovative concept that promises a cure for disconnected individuals.

So here we are. Preparations are underway to challenge the establishment overseas. Tensions are rising. Smoke is rising from within. An isolated player, naked, nervous, the words HIGH RELEASE POINT written on his body in chicken blood, has come staggering from the field and is taken aside in secrecy towards an inconclusive loan stint elsewhere.

Do you ever miss the start, when the world was still young? The days of Bazball 1.0, of uninhibited aggression.

2. Initial Adoration

Team architects offer a fresh beginning, a brighter tomorrow, love, salvation within a community with shared faith in the big idea.

How did it feel back then? Just men on a balcony enjoying success. Ink. Forearms. Focus. Confident masculinity. Admittedly, The squad often say they don’t use the label, amusingly since it’s not recognized, what exactly did I just watch?

But we know its essence. It’s Harry Brook executing a stroke so depraved it has to be pixelated. It’s the adrenaline of the captain at his peak, an expression conveying: focused titan, beard made of wood, untamed style, so authentically Modern Savage you almost imagine to look down and find him positioned at mid-off shirtless and cradling a wild salmon.

It’s Ben Duckett still being allowed to talk in press conferences, resembling a cheerful animal formally attired, saying stuff like we’re challenging norms. Indeed, the atmosphere, initially, was only good energy.

3. Expansion Period

Growth phase. Unity enforced by rote learning of the cult’s slogans. These beliefs can appear contradictory to prove commitment.

Is it just me? The backlash, the fury, the disappointment following the initial loss feels overblown, unwarranted. The performance was poor in Perth, as history shows. They were torn apart while bowling in a short span as the bowling and captaincy fell apart, manipulated by the batsman playing aggressively but smarter, adjusting to the pitch, an athlete shining with brilliance.

Now there is the attacks, the anger, the perception of the team as a kind of abomination. The consensus is that losing isn’t enough, they should be dismantled, to be cleansed, destroyed, defeated by the vengeful purity of Mitchell Starc’s movements, the low-fi orthodoxies of the veteran, marking achievements with a bashful smile similar to getting a pleasant gift. What will this do to them?

4. External Conflict

Issues emerge from failures in the plan. Yet, mistakes are denied. It starts to feed on hatred of the outside world.

Ultimately, approaching the next match, we have now reached a delicious point of tension in the story of this movement. England could quite easily win in Brisbane in a blur of adrenal disruption. Probably, they could lose just as quickly. Should they fail it feels like we really might be entering the death cult phase.

Before that happens, a couple of points to note on the topic. In the past, during the initial excitement, of optimism and energy, a column appeared calling it a phenomenon. People were very angry, which proved the point as it’s known how to confirm that it’s not a closed group is should followers react defensively objecting to the questioning of the beliefs.

The developments recently is just as interesting. Opposition to the style has now become the cult. Online outrage is widespread, angry English pundits, images of frustrated supporters abroad cheated out of three days of cricket, reminiscent of people wanting fairness.

On the other hand, there is the broader context of the opponent’s mixed ingrained annoyance with the aggressive tourists, claiming, hey, that thing you love and have fostered and nurtured as one way of separating yourself culturally from us, it’s just a joke after all.

This is the core issue. Everything is a cult. The approach was a phenomenon as the game has its own culture. Or rather, the sport in England is closed, a clique, an elite gathering, a restricted environment with centuries of ceremonial past defining it. Historically, this was where influence is guarded. It’s the colonial game of the British, the early image-makers. And guess what, the country is a phenomenon, a structure of hidden ranks, a royal family remains.

England’s cricketers have been enclosed in this system from a young age. Seeking change, to build a better atmosphere, they are simply replicating their past, creating another a bubble, a limited community, but doing it this time with a new team and a coach promoting authenticity if you fit the mold.

Stay present. Run towards the danger. Despite efforts, things stay similar.

Considering this, now is the time to offer compassion for Bazball, to appreciate its good points, of which there are many. What does it represent? Creating a sense of freedom. Questioning traditions. Batting aggressively|Attacking with