Zak Crawley hailed England team-mate Joe Root as a "champion bloke" and "the best player he has played with or against" after he ended his wait for a Test century in Australia.

Root scored an unbeaten 135 off 202 balls as England closed out day one of the second Test on 325-9, with Jofra Archer on 32 not out. 

Crawley, who was out for a pair in Perth, also scored an impressive 76 from 93 deliveries.

It took Root 30 innings to reach his first ton Down Under, having previously scored nine half-centuries without going on to reach triple figures.

England’s all-time leading scorer in the longest format came to the crease at 5-2 before batting through the majority of the opening day in Brisbane, and Crawley was delighted for Root.

Across interviews with TNT Sports and Test Match Special, Crawley said: "I'm chuffed for him [Root]. He hasn't been speaking about it at all. It's all outside noise.

"He's the best player I've ever played with or against. A champion bloke.

"GO BALL... YES JOE!"

Ben Stokes was all of us watching that  pic.twitter.com/jNDMgnrpXI

— England Cricket (@englandcricket) December 4, 2025

"Sometimes you don't get the rub of the green, but he didn't need the rub of the green. He just played a flawless knock.

"He made it look effortless. He has worked so hard on his game and he is a brilliant player. We are so chuffed and thrilled to bits for him."

And on his own performance, Crawley added: "It wasn't quite as good as Joe, but I'll take it.

"I felt good – much better than Perth. I was just trying to keep it simple, score straight and on the leg side. I was happy with my knock. I was gutted to get out when I did. The pitch was getting flatter. We finished well with Joe and Jof.

"I had a clear plan and I stuck to it. I hit the ball hard if it came into my area on the leg side. A couple of loose shots as I tend to do but I got away with them and played nicely down the ground as well.

"I'm not too sure [what the plan is on day two]. We'll see how these guys go. They're going to go hard in the morning and it'll be an important first 10 overs with the ball."

It was also another blistering performance from Mitchell Starc, who took six wickets.

Starc has now taken 88 wickets in 15 day-night Tests, including six five-wicket hauls, and is also the fourth bowler to take 250+ scalps in the longest format on Australian soil.

He does not know why he is so good with the pink ball, but credited both sides with how they adapted to the conditions.

"I get asked all the time, but I still don't know. It is what it is. I still think it's like a white ball," said Starc.

Mitchell Starc passes Wasim Akram as the most prolific left-arm bowler in Test cricket history #Ashes | #MilestoneMoment | @nrmainsurance pic.twitter.com/gxzYjLGR2S

— cricket.com.au (@cricketcomau) December 4, 2025

"It was a soft ball, but good Test cricket. A couple of Yorkshiremen between the wickets and Joe batted well there. Once that ball goes soft it is not the easiest thing to score with and it's certainly not the easiest to bowl with.

"Proper Test cricket, albeit [with] a pink ball. A solid day's Test cricket."

Starc also became the left-arm pacer with the most wickets in Test history (418), surpassing Wasim Akram’s 414, but he was not focusing on that achievement just yet.

"I'll reflect on that later. Wasim remains at the pinnacle of left-armers," he added.