England beat Sri Lanka 2-1 to clinch the 3-match ODI series
Harry Brook and Joe Root smashed centuries
Brook pulls off the "Beer smash" celebration
Joe Root defends his emote; Brook explains the decision
Veteran England batter Joe Root has come out to defend ODI captain Harry Brook following the latter's beer smash emote to celebrate his match winning century against Sri Lanka in the 3rd and series concluding one-day international yesterday.
After losing the 1st ODI in a close contest, England responded with back-to-back wins in the remaining matches to win the first leg of the white-ball tour by 2-1.
In the 3rd ODI yesterday (27th January), centuries from Harry Brook and Joe Root helped England prevail over Sri Lanka comfortably ahead of the upcoming 3-match T20I series from Friday, Jan 30 onwards.
Harry Brook Goes 'Stone Cold' Steve Austin Mode
Right after hitting his 3rd ODI century yesterday, Harry Brook chose to pull off an unique celebration.
He smashed his hand gloves against one another similar to the way former WWE Superstar "Stone Cold" Steve Austin used to smash beer cans during his entrance to the ring.
After smashing his gloves, Brook appeared to be tipping them on his mouth.
His celebration quickly went viral all over the internet with many suggesting that he used it as a reference to the night club brawl he was involved in during England's tour of New Zealand.
Brook had an altercation with a bouncer who refused to let the England captain enter a night club. The right-hand batter had almost lost his position as captain before being given a final warning along with a £30,000 fine.
Joe Root Defends; Brook Explains Beer Smash Celebration
Joe Root, who saw Brook work his magic with the bat against Sri Lanka from the other end, hope that the media and the people did not take the latter's celebration otherwise.
"I think that's his way of doing that really. He's trying to show he wants that approval from the group, through humour. Hopefully it's received in the right way because there's definitely no malice behind it, or anything other than trying to have a bit of a joke with his team-mates." - Root said after the match.
When asked to explain the celebration, Brook stated that he is trying his best to gain his trust and that the emote was all about letting his mates know that he wants to celebrate the series win with them.
"It was just more about celebrating tonight with the boys. Like I said the other day in my press conference, I've got to try and gain that trust back with the lads and the way I wanted to do that was perform, play well and lead from the front." - Brook said.
Meanwhile, England and Sri Lanka will start their preparations for the ICC T20 World Cup next month with a 3-match T20I series.
The 1st match is slated to take place on January 30, followed by the 2nd and 3rd T20I on February 1 and 2.
