Legendary Australian opener Matthew Hayden was saved by England’s Joe Root from a very embarrassing promise after scoring a century in the second Test of the ongoing Ashes 2025-26 at the Gabba, Brisbane.
Hayden, one of the all-time greats, had boldly stated that he would “walk naked around the MCG” if Joe Root failed to score a century in the ongoing Ashes.
However, Hayden’s family, especially his daughter Grace Hayden, had requested Joe Root to please score a century to save them from the embarrassment of seeing him naked. Root came good and scored a brilliant unbeaten ton in Brisbane, though England lost the Test by 8 wickets and now trails the series 0-2.
Grace Hayden turned the situation into a humorous viral reaction. In a video posted to social media, she admitted that she had never been happier to watch an England player win the Ashes. Her relief did not end there. She issued a lighthearted warning to her father and pledged to take action if he made such a promise again.
“I was so grateful that Root scored a hundred. It was the first time in my life I wanted an Englishman to do well in an Ashes series. Root, oh my goodness, thank you from the bottom of my heart. I'm disowning my father if he says he's going to run naked around anything ever again,” Grace Hayden stated in a video.
Meanwhile, Matthew Hayden criticized England pacer Jofra Archer's style after England lost the second Ashes Test against Australia, falling behind 2-0 in the series.
Archer had a heated altercation with Australia skipper Steve Smith before the batsman slammed the bowler for several boundaries.
"It was really quite painful to watch with Jofra Archer. There were periods in Perth where he cranked it up. But largely speaking, when it really counted in the first innings (in Brisbane), he bowled the majority of those overs at 130-136km/h.
Then to see that stark difference of airspeed in Australia's second innings, and have all that verbal barrage and fake smiles. That's never going to endear Jofra Archer to his own fans, let alone a great player like Steve Smith. Certainly, for people who know the game very well, that was a very disappointing reaction with very little humility and a whole bunch of bravado," Hayden said as quoted from The Sydney Morning Herald.
