England’s batting, bowling and fielding taking turns to let them down

Joe Root says he will only be able to enjoy his first Test century on Australian soil if it comes in a win and has bullishly backed England to escape the Gabba with a rare victory.

England find themselves in a tight spot after the second day of this vital second Test, with Australia 44 in front with four first innings wickets in hand. This is despite Root’s unbeaten 138, his long-awaited first hundred on Australian soil.

Root praised England for a resurgence under lights, and believes they can still level the series with their first win in Brisbane since 1986.

“The most important thing is how we approach tomorrow,” he said. “Clearly we didn’t get it right to start with, but I think the way we responded especially towards the back end of the day, getting that cluster of wickets, and then Stokesy backing that up. The wheels could have come off and other times, probably on a tour where I was captain, they would have.

“The most important thing is we turn up tomorrow with a really good attitude and understanding of how we are going to finish the innings off. We know our best cricket and when we execute well we’re a very difficult side to play against.

“I don’t think we’re massively out of the game at all, I think we’re actually not too far behind as long as we get things right early tomorrow.

“They [the top order batsmen] are all more than capable of winning matches for England and they’ve got an opportunity in front of them in the next couple of days. We shouldn’t be looking at what’s gone before, you’re always looking to learn lessons and if there’s little things you can pick up then fine but it’s an exciting prospect to go and win a pink-ball Test match in Brisbane where we’ve not done it for a long time. Let’s look at that carrot as something we all want to achieve.”

Asked about how much he enjoyed his century, he said: “I’ll be more equipped to tell you at the end of the game”, adding “of course” it would mean more in a winning cause.

“I’m very grateful for that support,” he said. “But, I’ve said a few times, this tour is not about me, it’s not about me scoring a hundred in Australia, it’s about us trying to win the Ashes. My job is to score as many runs as I can. As a senior batter within that team, I expect that of myself and I’ll go out there with the same attitude every single time.”

Root celebrated his hundred with a shrug of the shoulders.

“I don’t really know to be honest,” he said when asked why he celebrated in that fashion. “I didn’t really know what to do and that’s what you do when you don’t know. So unfortunately there’s no cool story behind it.”