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In the end, the moment of celebration was flawless, out there under that strange intense blue southern sky, amid the chaos of the match situation – hyper Baz energy, the English lower order cutting loose with reckless abandon at the other end.

So yeah. All that stuff. At the heart, the former captain eased the ball away past fine leg to notch his long-awaited Test hundred in Australia.

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

An Achievement Frozen in Time

A batsman who already possessed thirty-nine centuries in this traditional format of a sport has now compiled his 40th. But, trace the narrative, the craft, the jags in the road.

There'll, of course, be a lot of banter-war material to be settled. Does this cement Joe Root's greatness? Is he *Australian* great?

Yet there exists something more about wishing for Root to be great in Australia. It’s not about rivalry. Any Australian who cares for cricket already knows Root is a exceptional cricketer.

The Captain's Century as a Reliable Handhold

Root’s hundred felt important in other ways, not least as something concrete 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.

This was not merely a hundred in Australia, but a outstanding one in genuinely tough conditions, an innings that could have saved his team in this series.

The innings commenced with the early wickets tumbling, and England’s greatest modern player coming out at 5/2. He was given a life early in the slips.

The Juxtaposition in the Middle

As the day progressed, England were 3/175. Two embodiments of elite Yorkshire grit at the crease.

On one side, Root was simply being himself, easy, lithe, alert. Meanwhile, Brook was batting like a man who desperately needs the bathroom.

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

A Costly Decision

Do you run towards this danger? Apparently so. No sighters, no feet. Just a flash of the bat first up.

The delivery to Brook was full-length, the edge thick. There is no scenario where this was a good 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.

Root's Steady Answer

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

Root provided his own quiet rebuke, a success for doing your homework, correcting your flaws.

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

Will they take twenty wickets? Can they evolve? Not sure. But Joe Root did score a hundred.