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Finally, even the celebration was perfect, out there under that unusual vivid blue southern sky, within the tumult of the game-state – manic Baz energy, England’s lower order swinging freely with reckless abandon at the other end.

Right. All that drama. In the middle, the veteran batsman eased the ball away to fine leg to secure his first Test hundred in Australia.

However, for those who understand, the significance is clear. Imagine trying to explain why this was not just heartwarming, uplifting and cleansing, but quietly epic.

An Achievement Preserved in Its Own Light

A batsman who already possessed 39 hundreds in this rigorous discipline of a sport has now registered his 40th. But, trace the story, the skill, the jags in the road.

There'll, of course, be plenty of discussion talk to be settled. Does this cement Joe Root's greatness? Is he considered great by Australian standards?

Yet there exists something further about wanting Root to be great in Australia. This isn't concerning rivalry. Any Australian who cares for cricket recognizes Root is a world-class cricketer.

Root's Hundred as a Reliable Foundation

Root’s hundred felt significant in other ways, especially as something solid in the series for this team, a anchor in the ice.

Will England triumph at the Gabba? Don’t know. But Joe Root got a hundred. Was Harry Brook's dismissal the poorest shot? Yes. He did.

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

It had to start with the team in deep trouble, and England’s key batter coming out at two wickets down for five runs. He was given a life early in the slips.

The Dichotomy in the Middle

In the afternoon session, England were 175 for three. Two embodiments of elite Yorkshire-dom at the crease.

On one side, Root was simply being himself, easy, lithe, watchful. At the other, Brook was batting like a man who urgently requires the bathroom.

All the while, a dusk was coming, the shadows creeping across the ground, and Mitchell Starc revving up for the key spell of the day.

A Damaging Stroke

Is it wise to challenge this? Yes. No sighters, no feet. Just a flash of the bat first up.

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

It was, if nothing else, novel in its abjectness. We've witnessed England bat in Australia like a rusted machine. Now Brook presented the scarecrow, batting without a brain.

Root's Silent Answer

Therefore one half of this England team persisted in failing, while at the other end Root batted not just for his life, but for the team's cause.

Root provided his own quiet rebuke, a victory for preparation, addressing your flaws.

England are still in this series because he achieved the milestone, offered a lesson in what skill truly means.

Can they dismiss Australia? Are they going to learn? It remains to be seen. But Joe Root compiled a hundred.