Jonny Bairstow’s century was a polished, silky innings with barely a false shot and barring the sapping heat it seemed to be achieved effortlessly with the minimum of fuss. All of which contrasted with his celebrations when he reached three figures. Here there was a raw, unsmiling release of emotion as he tossed his bat and helmet to the ground, took a quick embrace from Ben Stokes before staring with gimlet eyes in the general direction of the press box, which he assured us afterwards was “coincidental”.

Jonny Bairstow makes England’s No 3 spot his own with stirring century Read more

Of course, he was pleased with his efforts. “A hundred for England is special and there’s a lot of emotion and a lot of hard work involved in getting back on the field. No one sees the hard work and all the time with the ice machines in rehab. That injury was potentially a six- to eight-week lay off,” explained Bairstow and he could have been content to take the course of least resistance and write this series off. “Instead I pushed and pushed to get back sooner. I spent a lot of time with the medical team and, of course, there were some mood swings. That’s all part of human nature and of professional sport.”

Once Bairstow had reached his century one suspects the England management saw a solution to the problem No 3 position staring them in the face, which could be a source of considerable relief. But Bairstow himself did not leap to that conclusion. “Long term, who knows where I’m going to bat?” he said. “In recent times, I’ve been at seven, six, five, four and now three.” There was no indication that Bairstow was claiming that No 3 slot for himself or that he was coveting it. There is a simple and obvious reason for that: he has said quite openly and reasonably – and, indeed, frequently – that his preference is to keep wicket for England. And wicketkeepers do not bat at three.

James Anderson (@jimmy9) Well done @jbairstow21 👏 pic.twitter.com/ljFLJ1d9lc

This was Bairstow’s sixth Test century; he has also hit six in ODI cricket and the oddity is that he has never yet scored a hundred for England in either format after keeping wicket. This may be coincidental, of course.

As for those celebrations, Bairstow preferred not to offer a detailed explanation. “I don’t think there have been many dull celebrations after any of my hundreds for England. It’s been an emotional time for me over the last few weeks. Interpret them as you wish,” he said, which is not as simple as it sounds. It is easier to conclude that Bairstow has put England in a strong position in the final Test.