After stirring debates about the pitches England were presented in the ODI series, captain Harry Brook annihilated Sri Lanka in the series decider at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo with a 57-ball hundred. His WWE-inspired celebration also grabbed eyeballs, only weeks after a during the 2025-26 Ashes tour to Australia.
Walking in to bat in the 32nd over, Brook joined Joe Root and played a rapid knock laced with nine sixes. The pair forged an unbroken 189-run partnership with Root slamming his 20th ODI century.
After Brook marked his century, he celebrated by stripping off his batting gloves, clashing them together, and tilting them toward his mouth as if taking a drink, referring to the iconic ring entrance by WWE legend “Stone Cold” Steve Austin. Austin would catch two beer cans tossed from ringside, smash them together in a foam-filled salute, and guzzle them down to the delight of the crowd. Brook confirmed post-match that it was indeed a nod to Austin.
“It was just more about celebrating tonight with the boys,” Brook explained.
“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.”
Joe Root says he hopes that Harry Brook’s ‘beer smash’ celebration after reaching his century against Sri Lanka won’t be taken the wrong way 🍺
Brook confirmed after the match that the celebration was a tribute to former WWE wrestler ‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin, and also an…
— Test Match Special (@bbctms)
Former skipper Root said that Brook was trying to earnestly win the confidence of the team and that his celebration shouldn’t be misread.
“I think that’s his way of doing that really,” Root said. “He’s trying to show he wants that approval from the group, through humour.
“That’s another area of why he’s going to be a great leader, because he has that side to him as well.
“He’s showed his calmness and his clarity under pressure, and he’s 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 trying to have a bit of a joke with his team-mates.”
Brook, who often had England fans and experts holding their heads due to how he got out during the recent Ashes series,
The Test vice-captain was involved in an altercation on the night before an ODI during the New Zealand series on November 1 – in which he led England to defeat, with the skipper contributing six runs. It was his first series abroad as captain. He was fined 30,000 pounds and given a final warning by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), though as the incident occurred just a few weeks before the Ashes, it only came to light more than two months later when the team had already been comprehensively outclassed by the Australians.
Brook admitted that “I’ve made a terrible mistake” and fans “have every right to be annoyed.”
“I’ve put myself in a situation which I shouldn’t have done. I’m extremely sorry to all the supporters for what I did in New Zealand,” he told BBC Sport.
