Joe Root said he hopes England captain Harry Brook’s WWE-inspired celebration after a blistering century against Sri Lanka on Tuesday will not be misinterpreted, as he attempts to rebuild trust following last year’s nightclub incident.
Brook smashed 136 off just 66 deliveries, bringing up his ton in 57 balls before celebrating by removing his gloves and smashing them together, mimicking former WWE wrestler “Stone Cold” Steve Austin’s signature beer can celebration in the ring.
Brook walked in with England at 166-3 and built an unbeaten 191-run stand with Root (111 not out) to guide England to 357-3, eventually winning by 53 runs.
The captain confirmed it was a tribute to Austin but insisted the celebration was simply about “celebrating tonight with the boys” as England clinched the ODI series 2-1.
“Like I said the other day in my press conference, I’ve got to try and gain that trust back with the lads,” Brook said.
“The way I wanted to do that was perform, play well and lead from the front.”
Brook had previously acknowledged he was lucky to be England captain after apologising for an altercation with a nightclub bouncer in New Zealand last year.
Root defended his teammate’s celebration, saying there was “no malice” behind the gesture and hoped it would be taken in the right spirit.
“I think you can work it out if you’ve ever watched wrestling, but that’s his way of doing that, trying to show that he wants that approval from the group is through humour,” Root said.
“That’s another area of why I think he’s going to be a great leader because he has that side to him as well. He showed his calmness and his clarity under pressure, but he also showed humour as well in doing that.
“Hopefully, it’s received in the right way because there’s definitely no malice behind it or anything other than him just trying to have a bit of a joke with his teammates.”
England will now face Sri Lanka in three Twenty20 matches before beginning their T20 World Cup campaign next month.