Joe Root Shines with Maiden Test Century in Australia as England Surpasses 300 Runs

Root's Historic Performance at the Gabba

Brisbane [Australia], December 4: England's star batsman Joe Root achieved his first Test century on Australian soil, leading his team to a total of over 300 runs by the end of Day 1 in the second Test against Australia at the Gabba on Thursday.

At the close of play on Day 1, England stood at 325/9 after 74 overs. Joe Root scored 135 runs off 202 balls, hitting 15 fours and one six, while Jofra Archer contributed 32 runs off 26 balls, including one four and two sixes, remaining not out.

England began the final session at 196/4, with Root on 68 and captain Ben Stokes at 14. The team crossed the 200-run mark when Stokes executed a beautiful off-drive against Mitchell Starc on the first ball of the 50th over.

In a tense moment during the 52nd over, Australia opted for a DRS review for an LBW decision against Root. Fast bowler Scott Boland delivered a sharp ball that struck Root on the pads, but replays showed the impact was outside off, allowing Root to continue his innings.

In a remarkable fielding effort, Josh Inglis made a direct hit that caught Stokes off-guard at the striker's end in the 55th over. Stokes was dismissed for 19 runs off 49 balls, which included four boundaries.

Mitchell Starc then bowled wicketkeeper Jamie Smith for a two-ball duck in the next over. Root, in the 62nd over, struck three boundaries, moving into the 90s.

Starc claimed his fourth wicket by dismissing Will Jacks for 19 runs in the penultimate delivery of the 65th over. In the 66th over, Root reached his maiden century in Australia, achieving the milestone in 181 balls, marking his 40th Test hundred overall.

This century made Root the second English player, after Maurice Leyland, to score a century on the first day of a Gabba Test, and he became the eighth player to achieve this feat for England at the Gabba.

Starc completed his five-wicket haul by dismissing Gus Atkinson for four runs, with Alex Carey taking a superb catch. This marked Starc's 18th five-wicket haul in Test cricket and his second in the current Ashes series.

Root and Archer then aggressively targeted the Australian bowlers, scoring 19 runs off Boland and 15 runs off Starc, which propelled England past the 300-run mark.

Root executed a reverse scoop off Boland that went for six, causing Australia to concede runs. The partnership between Root and Archer, which remained unbeaten at 61 runs for the last wicket, provided England with a solid advantage at stumps on Day 1.

This partnership is now the highest 10th wicket partnership in a day-night Test, surpassing the previous record of 59 runs set by Tom Blundell and Blair Tickner in Mount Maunganui in 2023.

Earlier in the day, England made a strong comeback after losing early wickets, with Crawley and Root forming a composed, unbeaten 93-run partnership following the dismissals of Ben Duckett and Ollie Pope by Mitchell Starc in the second Ashes Test of the five-match series in Brisbane.

At the end of the first session, England had reached 98/2 in 24 overs, with Crawley (61*) and Root (32*) not out.

Brief Scores: England 196/4 (Zak Crawley 76, Joe Root 135*, Mitchell Starc 6/71) vs Australia.