Joe Root broke his century drought in Australia on Day 1 of the Gabba Test.
Ahead of the ongoing Ashes series, Australian legend Matthew Hayden had made a bold prediction about Joe Root, expressing confidence that the veteran England batter would break his century drought Down Under this time around.
“I will walk nude around the MCG if he doesn’t make a hundred this summer," Hayden had declared.
Root failed to make a mark in the Ashes opener at Perth, returning with scores of 0 and 8. As a result, he extended his drought to 29 Test innings without a century on Australia soil.
However, the No.1-ranked Test batter slammed his maiden hundred in Australian during the first day’s play in the second Ashes Test at Gabba, much to the relief of Hayden.
Hayden responded with a playful message after Root completed what was his 40th Test match hundred.
“G’day Joe, congratulations mate. Took you a while and there was no one that had more skin in the game than me, literally. Ten fifties and finally a hundred—good on ya mate, ripper knock,” Hayden said in a video shared by ECB on X.
Joe Root finished the day on 135 not out off 202 balls, with England reaching 325/9 at stumps after skipper Ben Stokes won the toss and elected to bat.
The knock came at a time when the Three Lions desperately needed stability. The visitors were reeling at 5/2 in just the third over after Mitchell Starc’s early burst. Root absorbed the pressure, rebuilt with precision, and slowly shifted the momentum back England’s way.
The 181-ball century was a significant milestone for Root as it was his maiden Test hundred in Australia in his 16th Test and 30th innings Down Under.