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In the end, even the celebration was perfect, out there under that strange intense blue southern sky, amid the chaos 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. At the heart, the veteran batsman eased the ball away through fine leg to notch his first Test hundred in Australia.

But, then if you know, you know. Consider trying to explain the reason this was not just heartwarming, inspiring and cathartic, but profoundly significant.

A Moment Frozen in Its Own Light

A player who already possessed 39 hundreds in this traditional format of a sport has now registered his fortieth. Yet, consider the narrative, the craft, the jags in the road.

There'll, of course, be a lot of discussion material to be settled. Does this cement Joe Root's greatness? Is he considered great by Australian standards?

However, there is something more about wishing for Root to be great in Australia. It isn't regarding one-upmanship. Every Australian who cares for cricket is well aware Root is a great cricketer.

The Captain's Century as a Sturdy Anchor

Root’s hundred felt significant in other ways, not least as something concrete in the series for this team, a anchor in the glacier.

Are England going to win at the Gabba? Uncertain. But Joe Root got a hundred. Did Harry Brook produce a disastrous stroke? Yes. He did.

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

It began with the team in deep trouble, and England’s premier batsman coming out at 5/2. Root was dropped early in the slips.

The Contrast in the Crease

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

On one side, Root was exuding calm, easy, lithe, watchful. Meanwhile, Brook was batting like a man who desperately needs the bathroom.

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

A Costly Stroke

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

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

It was at least novel in its utter failure. We've witnessed England bat in Australia like the Tin Man. Now Brook gave us the scarecrow, batting without a brain.

The Veteran's Steady Response

Thus one half of this England team persisted in failing, while at the other end Root batted with immense resolve, but for the entire innings.

He offered his own masterful response, a triumph for preparation, addressing your flaws.

England are still in this series because he achieved the milestone, provided a lesson in what talent in the end means.

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