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Ultimately, the very celebration was ideal, out there under that unusual intense blue southern sky, in the frenzy of the match situation – manic Baz energy, the English lower order cutting loose with reckless abandon at the other end.

Indeed. All of that. In the middle, Joe Root steered the ball away past fine leg to complete his long-awaited Test hundred in Australia.

But, then if you know, you know. Picture trying to explain the reason this was more than heartwarming, uplifting and cleansing, but subtly monumental.

An Achievement Caught in Its Own Light

A batsman who already had 39 centuries in this starchy formal dance of a sport has now scored his 40th. However, trace the story, the skill, the jags in the road.

There'll, of course, be plenty of banter-war talk to be resolved. Does this cement Joe Root's greatness? Does he now rank among Australian greats?

Yet there exists something further about hoping for Root to be great in Australia. It’s not about one-upmanship. Any Australian who knows about cricket recognizes Root is a great cricketer.

The Captain's Century as a Solid Anchor

The century felt meaningful in other ways, especially as something solid in the series for this team, a foothold in the ice.

Can England secure victory at the Gabba? It's unclear. But Joe Root got a hundred. Did Harry Brook play... the worst shot yet? Yes. He did.

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

The innings commenced with the early wickets tumbling, and England’s key batter coming out at two wickets down for five runs. Root was dropped early in the slips.

The Juxtaposition in the Middle

By mid-afternoon, England were 175 for three. Two embodiments of elite Yorkshire grit at the crease.

At one end, Root was playing his natural game, easy, lithe, alert. At the other, Brook was batting like a man who urgently requires the bathroom.

Meanwhile, a darkness was coming, the shadows creeping across the ground, and the swing maestro revving up for the key spell of the day.

A Damaging Choice

Should one attack this threat? Apparently so. No sighters, no feet. Just a flash of the bat first up.

The delivery to Brook was full, the edge thick. There is no world where this was a smart choice.

It was, if nothing else, novel in its utter failure. We have seen England bat in Australia like the Tin Man. Now Brook gave us the scarecrow, batting without a brain.

The Veteran's Silent Rebuke

Therefore one half of this England team kept faltering, while at the other end Root batted for survival, but for everyone else’s too.

Root provided his own quiet rebuke, a triumph for diligence, working at your flaws.

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

Are they going to bowl Australia out? Can they evolve? Not sure. But Joe Root made a hundred.