Sydney, Jan 5 (UNI) As the Sydney daylight softened and the familiar hum of the SCG grew louder, Joe Root stood once more at the centre of an Ashes narrative that seems increasingly shaped by his bat and temperament.
When Mitchell Starc banged one in short and wide, Root rocked back and punched it calmly to deep backward point for a single. The scoreboard flicked to 150, and the Barmy Army erupted in a long, rolling chorus of “Roooooooot” that echoed across the ground. Root barely smiled, raising his bat briefly, acknowledging spectators that has come to expect these moments from him. This was the 17th time he had crossed 150 in Test cricket, a feat bettered only by Sachin Tendulkar (20), Brian Lara (19), Kumar Sangakkara (19) and Don Bradman (18).
It was a landmark that neatly summed up Root’s career — consistency married to quiet authority. From elegant drives to late cuts that died near the slips, he stitched together another innings of control and purpose, building on the fluency he showed on the opening day and the grit he displayed through a testing morning session.
Earlier, Root had reached his 41st Test hundred, nudging Michael Neser for two with a full-faced push down the ground. The celebration was uncharacteristically expressive: a firm fist pump, a kiss to the helmet, and a raised bat held aloft as the SCG rose in appreciation. A hug from wicketkeeper Jamie Smith followed, a small moment of camaraderie in an innings heavy with significance. The hundred drew him level with Ricky Ponting on the all-time list, behind only Tendulkar (51)and Jacques Kallis (45).
The numbers now form an imposing backdrop to Root’s presence. Since 2021, he has scored 24 Test hundreds, more than double that of his closest contemporaries — Steven Smith, Kane Williamson, Harry Brook and Shubman Gill. In this series, he has joined an exclusive group of England batsmen to score multiple hundreds in an away Ashes since 1994/95, alongside Michael Vaughan (3 in 2002/03), Alastair Cook (3 in 2010/11) and Jonathan Trott (2 in 2010/11).
England’s first-innings total of 384 owed much to Root’s command at the crease, and by stumps on Day 2 Australia, despite a spirited response led by Travis Head, were 166 for two, still 218 runs adrift.
There was fight from the hosts and flair from Head as the evening session gathered pace, but the shape of the match — and perhaps the series — continues to be defined by Root. In an era of rapid change and relentless schedules, his ability to compile innings of substance, away from home and under pressure, has made him not just England’s linchpin, but one of Test cricket’s enduring figures.
