England’s second innings in Perth was balanced on a knife-edge when Mitchell Starc went full at Joe Root. England were four down, the lead still fragile, and their most reliable batter was the one thing standing between Australia and a crack at the lower order. One ball late, Root’s off stump was splayed, the score lurched to 76/5 with a lead of 116, and the noise inside Gabba went up a notch.
What came next, though, was just as telling as the shattered stumps. The broadcast cut away from the pitch to the commentary box and locked into Stuart Broad’s face, folding into pure, helpless disappointment.
Broad wears the hurt, Hayden enjoys the chaos
Broad reacted like a man who had felt that dismissal in his bones. As the ball clattered into the base of the off stump, he rubbed his eyes, pinched the bridge of his nose and briefly leaned back, lips pressed together, expression somewhere between disbelief and wary recognition. One could almost see the all-rounder in him wanting to be back out there, trying to drag England out of trouble himself.
Beside him, Matthew Hayden was the picture of contrast. While Broad sagged, Hayden watched the replay with an unmistakable grin, shoulders relaxing. It was the body language of an ex-Australia opener who has seen this movie before – English hopes pinned on their star batter, an Australian quick ripping him out, and the home crowd roaring its approval.
That few-second clip captured the emotional divide of an Ashes series. Stuart Broad is officially a neutral analyst, but he has shared dressing rooms, series scars and trophies with Root; every English collapse still lands on his face. Hayden, meanwhile, slipped effortlessly back into the role of a partisan enforcer enjoying another swing of momentum Australia’s way.
Joe Root’s dismissal, his second failure of the match, carried weight beyond just a number on the card. He is the anchor of the England side, the batter expected to stretch the lead, and set up games. When he fell and England slid to 76/5, it felt like a potential turning point in both the Test and how the narrative of the series is set up.
