Harry Brook hits first home Test century as England push lead beyond 300
England are 307 ahead at lunch.
Harry Brook struck his first Test century on home soil as he and Joe Root swelled England’s lead beyond 300 over the West Indies on day three at Trent Bridge.
For the fifth time in just 14 appearances, Brook reeled off a hundred but, after previous successes in Rawalpindi, Multan, Karachi and Wellington, he was finally able to do so in front of a home crowd.
Brook put on 109 in a stand of 189 with Root, who stood firm on 81 not out as England reached lunch on 348 for six.
That left them 307 ahead but Brook’s departure kicked off a run of three wickets for 19, Ben Stokes and Jamie Smith both dismissed cheaply as the West Indies went into the break with wind in their sails.
Brook resumed on 71 and wasted no time testing out the middle of his bat, thumping the fifth delivery of the morning through the covers as Jayden Seales offered up a hint of width.
He was even more emphatic when the seamer drifted too full, hammering a straight drive down the ground for four more.
The West Indies tried to unsettle Brook with the short ball but only one bumper, from Shamar Joseph, really looked like knocking him of stride. He cruised to 99 by steering Alzarri Joseph to wide of gully and sprinted through for a single to bring up his ton.
Brook took the moment in his stride but his team-mates filled the balcony to acknowledge his efforts and were back on their feet two balls later as Root notched up a no-frills half-century.
It was Root’s 63rd fifty, taking him past Australian great Ricky Ponting and into third on the all-time list.
The first over of spin from Kevin Sinclair came at a cost of 11 as England’s advantage continued to grow but Brook paid a high price for his first error of the day. Flashing at Seales without moving his feet, he threaded an outside edge straight into Josh Da Silva’s gloves.
The stage looked set for Stokes to assert some authority but he walked straight into a trap, picking out fine leg with a hook that lacked real intent. The tourists grabbed another with the final ball of the session, Sinclair getting a thin edge as Smith pressed forward to one that held its line.
England remained in control of the game thanks to the reassuring presence of Root, who scored consistently without taking a single risk, but had ceded the momentum in the closing moments of the session.
