AUS vs ENG: Joe Root ends wait for first test ton in Australia at the Gabba
England’s star batter Joe Root scored his 40th test century against Australia on the very first day of the second test match at the Gabba in Brisbane in the ongoing Ashes 2025/26. Thanks to his incredible century, England finished the day with 325 runs after losing 9 wickets. At Stumps, Joe Root was batting on 135 runs while Jofra Archer was batting on 32. Root has hit 15 fours and a six in his innings so far, and played 202 deliveries. Both have added 61 runs for the 10th wicket so far. Thanks to this partnership, England not only managed to make a comeback, but they have now reached a total where they can fight against the hosts.
With this ton, Joe Root also claimed his first-ever test hundred on Australian soil. Before this, his best test cricket score against Australia in Australia was 89, which he achieved in the same venue during the 2021/22 Ashes. He has crossed the 50-run mark 9 times but never achieved a century, but today, he completed his ton.
For Australia, once again, Mitchell Starc became the player of the day, taking 6 wickets. While Michael Neser and Scott Boland took 1-1 wickets. On the opening day of the Gabba, England won the toss & elected to bat first. Well, this decision goes worse when, once again, Mitchell Starc strikes in the very first over in the innings. He dismissed Ben Duckett on a golden duck in the final ball of the first over. Following this, in his next over, he cleaned up Ollie Pope on duck. In just 2.3 overs, England lost their first two wickets.
From here, Zak Crawley and Joe Root made a 117-run partnership for the 3rd wicket. After scoring 76, Crawley was dismissed by Michael Neser. After Crawley, Root did a 54-run partnership with Harry Brook (31) for the fourth wicket. Starc removed Harry Brook (19). With Brook's wicket, Starc achieved a special milestone in his test career. He has now become the most prolific left-arm bowler in test cricket. He surpassed Pakistan's former legendary pacer Wasim Akram's 414 test wickets tally. Starc now has 418 test wickets.
England skipper Ben Stokes once again failed in this ongoing Australia vs England 5-match test series, scoring 19 runs. While attempting to make a single, he was run out. After Stokes was removed, Mitchell Starc destroyed England's tail, and all of a sudden, England's score went from 210/5 to 264/9. From here, Jofra Archer and Joe Root started counterattacks against Australian bowlers and ensured England didn't lose the final wicket on the remaining overs of the day. The partnership successfully helped England to surpass the 300-run mark even though it looked like they would be knocked out quickly. On the very first day of the pink ball test, a total of 74 overs of the match were possible.
