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December 27, 2025
December 27, 2025
December 27, 2025
It was one of the most intense opening days to a Test match in recent memory. The Gabba felt like a cauldron, the air as thick as soup, and with the pink ball zipping around for Mitchell Starc as he continued his bulldozing start to the series, the pressure on England was relentless.
And yet, all of this melted away as Joe Root tickled Scott Boland for four to seal his 40th Test century and – far more notably – his first on Australian soil. Root insisted this tour was never about addressing the gap in his otherwise stellar CV but, even for the most self-effacing of masters, the sense of relief out in the middle was palpable.
How England needed Root, with Starc’s latest sublime figures of six for 71, plus some further self-inflicted wounds, threatening to derail their Ashes moonshot inside three days. By stumps they had reached 325 for nine from 74 overs, with Root 135 not out – a foothold in the match and a broader pushback after 11 days of being tarred and feathered since Perth.
That foothold owed much to an unbroken 10th-wicket stand worth 61 runs, during which Jofra Archer crashed two sixes and a four to reach 31 not out. A day that had begun with Starc’s latest new-ball rampage and a sense of overwhelming English dread ended instead with the Barmy Army in full voice and the match carrying a very different complexion.
Root had gamboled out to the middle just 15 minutes into the first session, the scoreboard reading five for two after Ben Duckett and Ollie Pope had departed for ducks. Had Steve Smith held on to Root’s edge on two – which would have been a stunning catch diving to his left in front of first slip – this Ashes series might have been all but over right there.
But Root delivered when his country needed him most, stitching the innings together, tempering his ambition, and batting through to the close. Zak Crawley also deserved credit for his role at the top, compiling 76 from 93 balls in a 117-run stand for the third wicket. Maddening though he can be, the opener proved plenty here after beginning the series with a pair.
And although further partnerships kept being cut down before truly blossoming – not least two moments of brain fade from Harry Brook and Ben Stokes after nightfall – England’s decision to pack their batting for this Test produced an early dividend. (The Guardian)
