Harry Brook finished Day 1 of the fifth Ashes Test on 78 off 92 balls, with his 154-run partnership with fellow Yorkshireman Joe Root leaving England in a good position at 211 for three when bad light and rain cut short play in Sydney. Brook had copped criticism throughout the series for his tendency to be dismissed while attempting a rash shot after having got a good start and the 26-year-old admitted at the end of the day’s play on Sunday that he has to do better at trying to be patient.
“I’ve just got to be a little bit more patient and take my ones here and there, and thankfully I did that today,” he told reporters. “So that’s something I’ve got to think about going forward and put that into my game. Try and be a little bit patient at times and absorb the pressure. And whether that’s taking my ones instead of trying to hit boundaries, then so be it.”
Brook’s compulsive streak was on display on Sunday as well as he went for quite a few loose hook shots off Australia’s short-pitched bowling. He accepted that his performances in Australia have not been up to par for the second-ranked Test batsman in the world.
“It’s been a frustrating series,” he said. “I’ve been in double figures every innings bar one and that’s what I’ve done so well in my career. I’ve managed to go on and get big scores. It just hasn’t happened this series and there’s obviously been periods where I’ve played them slightly differently and it’s all part of the learning curve.
“It’s not an easy place to come and tour. The surfaces do change every game and throughout the game. It’s been a good trip to be a part of and obviously we’ve ended up on the wrong side of it, but hopefully there’ll be plenty more time to come over here.”
Interestingly, Brook ended the day’s play with a series tally of 310 runs at an average of 44.28, which makes him the highest run scorer for England thus far, although Root is not too far behind. He finished 2025 with an average of 45.35 in 10 innings in the calendar year, which by itself one would deem as impressive. For comparison, Ollie Pope, who was dropped after the third Test, which was the 64th of his career, has averaged over 45 in a calendar year just once. However, it is the lowest by Brook’s lofty standards – he had finished 2022 with an average of 80.00, 2023 with an average of 53.92 and 2024 with 55.00 for the respective calendar years.
