Joe Root’s magnificent innings under pressure at the Gabba confirmed his status as an all-time great with his first century in Australia.

A century down under was the one achievement missing from the glittering CV of England’s all-time leading scorer in test matches, but Joe Root has now silenced any questions over his legacy.

The Sheffield-born batter came in under pressure with England 5-2 at the Gabba, but a classy 138 not out guided England to a competitive total of 334 all out.

The Australian press had been critical of Root in the build-up to the series, questioning his status as a batting great, even dubbing him “Average Joe.”

This was despite his total of over 13,000 test runs, putting him second on the list of all-time run scorers and within striking distance of Sachin Tendulkar.

This pressure intensified after the first test of the series, in which Root registered a duck and then eight in his second innings.

His struggles were symbolic of an England batting performance many thought was careless and arrogant, with Root flashing at balls that could have been left comfortably on a fifth or sixth stump line.

Yet this time there was no such frenzy, with the Yorkshireman steering the ship for England in a characteristically cool and composed manner.

He formed a solid partnership with opening batter Zak Crawley, taking England to 122-2 before Crawley was dismissed on 76.

Root then remained a reassuring presence at the crease as wickets fell around him, before launching an aggressive counter-attack with tailender Jofra Archer worth 70 runs for the last wicket.

The attention will now turn to whether England’s best batter can help deliver a first series win in Australia since 2010-11, and the first in his career.

He has a home Ashes to his name alongside a World Cup, but helping to deliver his team a treasured away victory in Australia would be a huge step towards cementing his legendary status.

Featured image: Courtesy of @Englandcricket on X