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The Life Cycle of a Cult tends to be characterized by clear stages.

1. The Grand Vision

An inspiring figure or coaches present an innovative concept offering a panacea for struggling players.

And so it goes. Plans are in motion to challenge the establishment overseas. Tensions are rising. Conflict emerges from within. An isolated player, exposed, anxious, the slogan POSITIVE INTENT smeared across his chest as a symbol, has stumbled through the lines and is being led away in secrecy for a temporary assignment at Derbyshire.

Do you ever miss the start, when optimism reigned? The initial phase, of uninhibited aggression.

2. Love-Bombing

Cult leaders promise a reboot, hope for a future, camaraderie, salvation together united in belief in the big idea.

How did it feel at first? Just men on a balcony basking in glory. Tattoos. Forearms. Determination. Confident masculinity. Oh sure, England’s players insist Bazball doesn’t actually exist, amusingly as it’s denied, what did we see?

But we know the concept. It’s the player playing a shot so unconventional it defies description. It’s the adrenaline of the captain at his peak, an expression conveying: thoughtful warrior, rugged appearance, untamed style, truly contemporary you half-expect to notice and notice he’s fielding on the ground shirtless and cradling a wild salmon.

It’s Ben Duckett continuing to have permission addressing the media, resembling a happy little woodland creature formally attired, saying stuff like we’re breaking down traditions. And yes, the vibe, initially, was entirely positive.

3. A New Life

Building period. Cohesion maintained through repetition of key phrases. These ideas are often illogical as a test of “true belief”.

Am I alone? The criticism, the anger, the disappointment following the initial loss seems too strong, overdone. England batted badly during the match, as history shows. They were dominated defensively during a brief period as the bowling and captaincy fell apart, carved around by Travis Head batting like England but better, adaptive to conditions, an athlete shining with brilliance.

And now we have this the pile-on, the frustration, the perception of the team as a kind of abomination. The feeling seems to be that defeat must be total, they must be humbled, to be purged, destroyed, destroyed by the vengeful purity of Mitchell Starc’s movements, the low-fi orthodoxies of Scott Boland, out there celebrating successes humbly similar to getting a rewarding prize. What impact will this have?

4. Hate Bonding

Problems arise because of mistakes. However, faults are ignored. It starts to feed on anger towards critics.

In truth, approaching the upcoming game, we have now reached a critical juncture in the story of this thing. They might succeed in the next Test in a blur of adrenal disruption. More likely, failure may follow. Should they fail it feels like we may see the final stage.

Before that happens, several aspects worth saying about this. Previously, back in those heady early days, of optimism and energy, I wrote an article calling it a phenomenon. People were very angry, which demonstrated as it’s known a method to show something definitely isn’t a cult is should followers respond with anger rejecting criticism of the philosophy.

What has happened lately are equally notable. Criticism of the approach is now the trend. We have a uniformly angry internet, disappointed commentators, images of frustrated travelling fans cheated out of three days of cricket, like a room full of investors demanding recourse.

Meanwhile, we have the wider backdrop of Australia’s more nuanced ingrained annoyance towards the unconventional visitors, stating, your cherished traditions and have honed as part of your identity from the opposition, it’s not serious ultimately.

And this is the real point. All movements are similar. The approach was a phenomenon as the game has its own culture. In fact, the team has long been exclusive, a clique, a private event, a closed world with two hundred years of opaque and ritualistic cult history supporting it. It has long been where influence is guarded. It’s the British pastime of the nation, the early image-makers. And surprisingly, Britain is itself a cult, a series of esoteric hierarchies, a place that literally still has a king.

The team have been sealed up within this world since childhood. Seeking change, to foster positivity, they are mirroring their upbringing, creating another a bubble, an exclusive group, but doing it this time with a new team and a mentor who wants you to be yourself as long as yourself is quite a lot like myself.

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

With this mind, now is the time to show understanding for the approach, to acknowledge its merits, that are numerous. How to define it? Promoting liberation. Challenging orthodoxies. Batting aggressively|Attacking with