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In the end, even the celebration was ideal, under lights under that unusual intense blue southern sky, amid the chaos of the match situation – manic Baz energy, the English lower order cutting loose with reckless abandon at the other end.

So yeah. All that stuff. In the middle, the former captain guided the ball away past fine leg to notch his first Test hundred in Australia.

Yet, the true meaning resonates with those who have followed the journey. Consider trying to explain the reason this was more than warm, uplifting and cleansing, but quietly epic.

An Achievement Frozen in Time

A man who already had thirty-nine tons in this traditional format of a sport has now compiled his fortieth. Yet, follow the journey, the artistry, the setbacks.

There'll, of course, be a lot of debate material to be settled. Is Joe Root finally great? Does he now rank among Australian greats?

Yet there exists something further about hoping for Root to be great in Australia. It isn't regarding point-scoring. Any Australian who cares for cricket is well aware Root is a world-class cricketer.

Root's Hundred as a Reliable Foundation

This ton felt important in other ways, particularly as something concrete in the series for this team, a foothold in the ice.

Can England secure victory at the Gabba? Uncertain. But Joe Root got a hundred. Did Harry Brook produce a disastrous stroke? Yes. He did.

And not just a hundred in Australia, but a superb one in genuinely tough conditions, an innings that could have saved his team in this series.

It had to start with the early wickets tumbling, and England’s key batter coming out at 5/2. Root was dropped early in the slips.

The Juxtaposition in the Middle

As the day progressed, England were in a reasonable position. Two versions of elite Yorkshire-dom at the crease.

On one side, Root was playing his natural game, easy, lithe, watchful. Meanwhile, Brook was batting like a man who urgently requires the bathroom.

Meanwhile, a gloom was coming, the shadows creeping across the ground, and the pink ball genius preparing for the crucial spell of the day.

A Reckless Choice

Should one attack this threat? Apparently so. No settling in, no feet. Just a reckless waft first up.

The ball to Brook was full, the edge thick. There is no scenario where this was a sensible choice.

It was at least novel in its abjectness. We have seen England bat in Australia without fluidity. This was Brook as the scarecrow, batting without a brain.

Root's Quiet Response

Thus one half of this England team persisted in failing, while at the other end Root batted with immense resolve, but for the team's cause.

Root provided his own subtle correction, a victory for preparation, working at your flaws.

England are still in this series because he did the thing, offered a lesson in what talent in the end means.

Are they going to bowl Australia out? Can they evolve? Uncertain. But Joe Root compiled a hundred.