New Zealand v England: Joe Root & Harry Brook in master-and-apprentice stand

Joe Root and Harry Brook struck an unbeaten concern of 294 connected time one

Harry Brook was lasting successful the sunshine connected the Bay Oval outfield aft England's first-Test triumph implicit New Zealand.

On this peculiar occasion, the vessel of champagne successful Brook's manus was ne'er intended for his grandma.

"I mightiness person a solid of this myself tonight," helium said. "I'll person to marque definite she doesn't cognize astir it."

• Brook hits sublime 184 to enactment tourists successful control

Pauline was contiguous for 1 of Brook's archetypal encounters with Joe Root, successful the nets erstwhile Brook was inactive a teenager.

"I was astir 14," said Brook. "My grandma was sat successful the car watching. I bowled small gentle inswingers and I sneaked 1 done him."

Root tells it somewhat differently.

"He was bowling filthy seamers disconnected the incorrect foot," said Root. "He got maine retired successful the nets and helium conscionable continually talks astir it. It's truthful annoying."

It was Root who was astatine the different extremity erstwhile a 19-year-old Brook made his maiden first-class period for Yorkshire against Essex successful 2018.

On Friday astatine the Basin Reserve, a crushed with past erstwhile it comes to forming cricketing duos - James Anderson and Stuart Broad were agreed successful Test cricket for the archetypal clip present 15 years agone - Root and Brook shared a master-and-apprentice basal that hints astatine a prolific aboriginal for England's middle-order.

When they came unneurotic connected the archetypal greeting of the 2nd Test successful Wellington, England were 21-3 and rocking. The transportation greener than Greta Thunberg's recycling bin, Matt Henry bowling beauties threatening the edges of English bats.

What followed was an astonishing, rollicking, astir apt match-winning concern of 294 runs successful conscionable 58.2 overs. Only the rainfall stopped New Zealand chasing much leather, with Brook unbeaten connected 184 and Root 101 not out.

They had travel to this Test successful precise antithetic ways, with varying degrees of happiness successful their batting.

Brook is the epitome of the caller England nether Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum. Three hundreds successful his archetypal 5 Tests, each of them quicker than a hiccup. A batter connected the mode to multi-format superstardom with a whopping Indian Premier League deal successful his backmost pocket.

Root had been honorable capable to admit helium struggled to find the close tempo of his batting successful England's caller era.

Seven Tests without a 100 is hardly career-ending form, but for a subordinate the calibre of Root, it is simply a agelong clip betwixt drinks.

In this rescue act/counter-attack/evisceration of the New Zealand bowling, Brook and Root showed however they tin run perfectly successful tandem, portion playing successful their ain style.

Root was the drummer, keeping the bushed tapping and the people ticking. A glide here, a clip there, a dab into a gap.

Brook wields the bat similar a pb guitarist screeching retired a slayer riff. He is simply a one-man item reel susceptible of playing shots that instrumentality the enactment away.

There is simply a request for some of them successful the band.

Root's spot successful history, astir apt arsenic England's astir prolific runscorer and century-maker, is already assured.

Maybe helium volition beryllium challenged by Brook, who is breathing rarefied aerial with immoderate of the precise top to person ever picked up a bat.

His 807 runs, a tally helium has the accidental to adhd to connected Saturday, is the astir anyone has ever amassed successful the archetypal 9 innings of a Test career.

No England batter has ever reached 4 Test hundreds quicker than Brook's 9 innings. Root, for the record, needed 34 4 innings to marque his archetypal 4 centuries.

Whereas Brook is usually bothering Gilbert Jessop's 121-year-old grounds for England's fastest Test ton, made from 76 balls, helium is present knocking connected the doorway of Herbert Sutcliffe and Everton Weekes.

England's Sutcliffe and West Indian Weekes some reached 1,000 Test runs successful 12 innings, the fastest of each time. Sutcliffe did it successful 1925, Weekes successful 1949. Brook, 193 abbreviated of that landmark, has the remainder of this innings and 2 much to bushed them, oregon 3 much to match.

He sleeps contiguous with an mean of 100.88, amended than the top of them all, Donald Bradman. Even if helium is retired to the archetypal shot helium faces connected Saturday, it volition lone autumn to 89.67, comfortably the second-highest of immoderate subordinate with much than a Test innings oregon two.

"I'm definite it'll travel down precise quickly," helium said. "I'm conscionable trying to bask the infinitesimal and unrecorded successful what's happening astatine the minute.

"These are bully times but conscionable astir the country determination mightiness beryllium atrocious times truthful you've got to bask these moments and currency successful arsenic overmuch arsenic I can."

They are words that uncover plentifulness astir Brook's down-to-earth character. The IPL bidding warfare won by Sunrisers Hyderabad mightiness person made him a millionaire, but those who cognize him accidental determination is not a flash bony successful his body.

He is 1 if the hardest practisers successful the England team, often name-checked by skipper Stokes - "hearing Harry Brook saying helium wants to enactment connected a fewer things successful his crippled is great," were Stokes' words the time earlier this Test.

Brook celebrated his 24th day connected Wednesday with a circular of golf. He has missed England's 2 'team-bonding' exercises this winter, the archetypal successful Abu Dhabi earlier the circuit of Pakistan successful bid to determination into his caller house, the 2nd successful Queenstown connected New Zealand's South Island due to the fact that helium was making his one-day planetary debut successful South Africa.

This has been a wintertime erstwhile helium has pocketed a T20 World Cup winners' medal and ripped up the records successful Test cricket, nary of which mightiness person happened had Jonny Bairstow not slipped connected the play people and breached his leg.

When Bairstow returns, England person a batting jigsaw to implicit successful bid to accommodate him. If Zak Crawley survives astatine the apical of the order, does that mean Ben Foakes makes mode and Bairstow keeps wicket?

If Crawley is moved on, who opens? Bairstow, a regular white-ball opener? Gloveman Foakes has the temperament for the apical of the order. If you were picking purely connected technique, possibly adjacent Stokes is the champion antheral for the job.

Brook himself began arsenic an opener, but for present helium has eyes connected different prize - household bragging rights.

His highest people astatine immoderate level of cricket is 194. His begetter David erstwhile made 210 for Burley against Woodhouse successful the Airedale & Wharfedale League.

"I'm definite he'll beryllium messaging maine tonight," said Brook. "I person to look the archetypal shot tomorrow, get done that. That people volition beryllium successful the backmost of my mind."

As for grandma Pauline, plentifulness much awards - astir apt including bottles of champagne - are coming her way.