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Ultimately, the very celebration was perfect, on the field under that strange deep-blue southern sky, within the tumult of the match situation – manic Baz energy, the English lower order swinging freely death cult-style at the other end.

Right. All that drama. At the heart, the veteran batsman guided the ball away through fine leg to complete his long-awaited Test hundred in Australia.

But, then if you know, you know. Imagine trying to explain why this was not just heartwarming, uplifting and cathartic, but subtly monumental.

A Milestone Frozen in Its Own Light

A man who already had 39 tons in this rigorous discipline of a sport has now scored his 40th. However, consider the story, the craft, the setbacks.

There'll, of course, be plenty of debate material to be settled. Is Joe Root finally great? Is he *Australian* great?

However, there is something deeper about wishing for Root to be great in Australia. It’s not about one-upmanship. Every Australian who understands cricket recognizes Root is a great cricketer.

Root's Hundred as a Solid Handhold

Root’s hundred felt significant in other ways, particularly as something solid 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 produce a disastrous stroke? Yes. He did.

And not just a hundred in Australia, but a outstanding one in authentically tough conditions, an innings that could have saved his team in this series.

It had to start with the team in deep trouble, and England’s greatest modern player coming out at two wickets down for five runs. A chance was put down early in the slips.

The Dichotomy in the Middle

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

On one side, Root was playing his natural game, relaxed, graceful, watchful. At the other, Brook was batting like a man who urgently requires the bathroom.

Meanwhile, a gloom was coming, the shadows creeping across the ground, and the pink ball genius building up for the key spell of the day.

A Costly Decision

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

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

It was, if nothing else, novel in its abjectness. We have seen England bat in Australia without fluidity. Now Brook gave us the scarecrow, batting without a brain.

The Veteran's Steady Rebuke

Thus one half of this England team persisted in failing, while at the other end Root batted not just for his life, but for the entire innings.

Root provided his own masterful response, a victory for diligence, addressing your flaws.

The tourists are still in this series because he did the thing, delivered a lesson in what talent truly means.

Are they going to bowl Australia out? Can they evolve? Uncertain. But Joe Root compiled a hundred.