Joe Root breaks eight-year drought with Ashes century as England declare on day one

Joe Root, the English cricket team’s prolific batsman and current captain, showcased his brilliance on the opening day of the Ashes series at Edgbaston by scoring his 30th century in Test cricket. Root’s unbeaten 118* was the highlight of the day’s play, as he single-handedly carried the innings and demonstrated his ability to excel against the Australian side. This century marked Root’s first against Australia since 2015 and placed him on par with Matthew Hayden and Shivnarine Chanderpaul on the all-time list, just three centuries behind Alastair Cook’s record for England.

The surface at Edgbaston proved to be relatively benign for the bowlers, offering little assistance. Taking advantage of the favorable conditions, England adopted an aggressive approach and declared their innings at 393/8 at the end of the first day, having scored at a brisk rate of over five runs per over. As a result, Australia’s openers will resume their innings at 14/0 on the second day, trailing by a massive 379 runs.

The opening day witnessed an entertaining start, with Zak Crawley setting the tone by striking a boundary off the first delivery of the series from Pat Cummins. Crawley played a vital role in providing England with a rapid start, scoring a brisk 61 off 73 balls before falling just before lunch to an impressive delivery from Scott Boland.

The opening session also saw the dismissals of Ben Duckett (12), caught behind off Josh Hazlewood, and Ollie Pope (31), removed by Nathan Lyon. Despite these setbacks, England began the afternoon session strongly, with Root and Harry Brook forging a crucial 50-run partnership. However, Brook’s unfortunate dismissal, where the ball looped up and spun back onto the stumps after hitting his thigh pad, halted his promising innings at 32. Ben Stokes, England’s talismanic all-rounder, also departed cheaply, edging Hazlewood behind for just 1.

With Australia gaining momentum at 176/5, Root and Jonny Bairstow displayed exceptional batting skills to stabilize the innings and push the score to a respectable total on a favorable batting track. Bairstow played a fluent knock, scoring a run-a-ball 78 before being stumped while attempting an aggressive shot off Lyon. Moeen Ali contributed a quickfire 18 runs before suffering a similar fate, getting stumped by Alex Carey.

Stuart Broad and Ollie Robinson provided valuable support to Root, assisting him in reaching his century. Root’s innings was characterized by calculated shot selection and controlled aggression. Notably, he brought up his century with a flicked single, finishing unbeaten on 118* from 152 balls. His innings included remarkable shots like the reverse sweep and the ramp shot, both of which sailed over the boundary ropes for sixes, thrilling the spectators at Edgbaston.

Joe Root’s outstanding century on the opening day of the Ashes series provided a significant boost to England’s chances of gaining an advantage over their arch-rivals, Australia. His ability to adapt and perform under pressure against a strong Australian bowling attack reaffirmed his status as one of the world’s premier batsmen. Root’s milestone century also propelled him closer to Alastair Cook’s record of most centuries by an English player in Test cricket.