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In the end, the very celebration was flawless, on the field under that strange deep-blue southern sky, in the frenzy of the game-state – frantic Baz energy, the English lower order swinging freely with reckless abandon at the other end.

Right. All that drama. In the middle, the former captain steered the ball away to fine leg to notch his maiden Test hundred in Australia.

However, for those who understand, the significance is clear. Consider trying to explain why this was more than heartwarming, inspiring and cleansing, but subtly monumental.

An Achievement Preserved in Time

A batsman who already possessed thirty-nine centuries in this starchy formal dance of a sport has now registered his fortieth. However, follow the narrative, the craft, the setbacks.

There will, of course, be a lot of debate material to be hashed out. Is Joe Root finally great? Is he considered great by Australian standards?

However, there is something further about wanting Root to be great in Australia. It isn't regarding rivalry. Any Australian who knows about cricket is well aware Root is a exceptional cricketer.

Root's Century as a Reliable Handhold

Root’s hundred felt significant in other ways, particularly as something concrete in the series for this team, a handhold in the glacier.

Are England going to win at the Gabba? It's unclear. But Joe Root got a hundred. Was Harry Brook's dismissal the poorest shot? Yes. He did.

This was not merely 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 two wickets down for five runs. He was given a life early in the slips.

The Juxtaposition in the Middle

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

At one end, Root was simply being himself, relaxed, graceful, watchful. Meanwhile, Brook was batting like a man who urgently requires the bathroom.

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

A Costly Choice

Do you run towards this danger? Yes. No settling in, no feet. Just a reckless waft first up.

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

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

Root's Steady Answer

Thus one half of this England team continued to collapse, while at the other end Root batted for survival, but for everyone else’s too.

He offered his own masterful response, a victory for preparation, correcting your flaws.

England are still in this series because he scaled the peak, provided a lesson in what skill in the end means.

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