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Finally, the moment of celebration was flawless, out there under that strange intense blue southern sky, in the frenzy of the game-state – hyper Baz energy, the English lower order scything away with reckless abandon at the other end.

So yeah. All that stuff. Amidst it all, Joe Root guided the ball away past fine leg to complete his first Test hundred in Australia.

However, for those who understand, the significance is clear. Consider trying to explain why this was not just warm, uplifting and cathartic, but subtly monumental.

A Moment Preserved in Its Own Light

A batsman who already possessed 39 tons in this rigorous discipline of a sport has now scored his fortieth. But, trace the story, the skill, the twists and turns.

There'll, of course, be a lot of banter-war stuff to be resolved. Does this cement Joe Root's greatness? Is he considered great by Australian standards?

However, there is something further 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 world-class cricketer.

The Captain's Century as a Sturdy Handhold

The century felt significant in other ways, especially as something tangible in the series for this team, a handhold in the ice.

Are England going to win at the Gabba? Don’t know. 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 brilliant one in genuinely tough conditions, an innings that could 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. A chance was put down early in the slips.

The Dichotomy in the Crease

By mid-afternoon, England were 3/175. Two examples of elite Yorkshire batting at the crease.

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

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

A Costly Decision

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

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

It was at least novel in its abjectness. We've witnessed England bat in Australia like a rusted machine. Now Brook gave us the scarecrow, batting without a brain.

Root's Silent Response

And so one half of this England team persisted in failing, while at the other end Root batted for survival, but for the team's cause.

He delivered his own masterful response, a triumph for doing your homework, addressing your flaws.

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

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