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Ultimately, the very celebration was perfect, on the field under that strange intense blue southern sky, amid the chaos of the game-state – 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 eased the ball away past fine leg to notch his maiden Test hundred in Australia.

Yet, the true meaning resonates with those who have followed the journey. Picture trying to explain why this was more than warm, inspiring and cleansing, but profoundly significant.

A Milestone Frozen in Its Own Light

A man who already had 39 centuries in this starchy formal dance of a sport has now registered his 40th. Yet, follow the journey, the craft, the jags in the road.

There'll, of course, be plenty of discussion stuff to be settled. Has Joe Root finally achieved greatness? Is he considered great by Australian standards?

Yet there exists something more about wishing for Root to be great in Australia. This isn't concerning point-scoring. Any Australian who knows about cricket recognizes Root is a great cricketer.

Root's Hundred as a Solid Handhold

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

Will England triumph 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 truly tough conditions, an innings that may have saved his team in this series.

It had to start with the wings already falling off, and England’s key batter coming out at a dire 5 for 2. He was given a life early in the slips.

The Contrast in the Middle

In the afternoon session, England were in a reasonable position. Two embodiments of elite Yorkshire-dom at the crease.

On one side, Root was playing his natural game, relaxed, graceful, watchful. Meanwhile, Brook was batting like a man who desperately needs the bathroom.

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

A Reckless Decision

Is it wise to challenge this? Yep. No sighters, no feet. Just throw the hands at it first up.

The delivery to Brook was full, the edge clear. There is no context where this was a sensible choice.

It was, if nothing else, novel in its utter failure. We have seen England bat in Australia without fluidity. This was Brook as the scarecrow, batting without a brain.

The Veteran's Quiet Response

And so one half of this England team continued to collapse, while at the other end Root batted with immense resolve, but for everyone else’s too.

He offered his own subtle correction, a triumph for diligence, correcting your flaws.

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

Are they going to bowl Australia out? Will they adapt? It remains to be seen. But Joe Root did score a hundred.