But at Lord's he lived up to his promotion, hitting 74 on Thursday night, hitting Prabath Jayasuriya twice over mid-off and pulling Lahiru Kumara's tired short ball over midwicket. “When I stood at the other end and hit those straight sixes, they were unbelievable,” said Root, laughing at the end of the match. “It's like watching someone like Jacques Kallis play.”
It took him just 22 balls to turn his overnight score into a hundred, but not without moments of shock. After hitting the first two balls of the morning for four – a hit off the pads and a hit through cover – he was run out LBW by Paul Reiffel, but a review saved him as the ball was found to have missed leg. Marcus Trescothick, England's batting coach, punched the air in relief on the balcony.
Atkinson showed no such emotion and was unflappable as ever when hitting three figures. He has worked hard on his fundamentals with Surrey coaches Gareth Batty and Jade Dernbach, trying to stay as calm as possible when releasing and keep his eyes level. His training bore fruit with the shots that took him from 95 to 103, crisp drives either side of mid-off.
Finally, Atkinson allowed himself a smile and beamed as he charged towards the pavilion, fists clenched. His father, Ed, watched in disbelief from a hospitality suite in the stands and his teammates stood to applaud from the balcony, all grinning as they witnessed the improbable success of a man with a 6.71 average in this season's County Championship.
Atkinson had dinner with Zak Crawley and Harry Brook on Thursday night and was gently teased by them about the prospect of reaching three figures. “They put a bit of pressure on me but thankfully I managed it,” he said. “It was just pure euphoria. I was so happy, so relieved. It was quite a surreal moment.”
“I was pretty happy [last night]added Atkinson. “I had already scored over 70 points, so I tried not to put too much pressure on myself: if I'm out, I'm out. I just wanted to keep playing like I did yesterday. Luckily, it worked out today. I feel like I pushed quite a few boundaries today, so it was nice to just get there so quickly this morning.”
That Broad averaged 15.64 after that hundred, with eight fifties and no hundreds in his subsequent 199 innings, should be a reminder that Atkinson will not always have it so easy. For all his composure, he faced a four-man attack that had played 57 Test matches in total: the batting may look a little less straightforward next year when he faces India and Australia.
Atkinson, however, does not seem to be the type to play above his means and made it clear he is not looking for promotion. “I'm happy with eighth; eight is good,” he said. “I haven't thought too much about it… obviously the absence of Stokesy in this series gave me the opportunity to bat eighth and fortunately I scored a hundred. In the future, of course, I want to bat as high as possible.”
“I've been unhappy with my batting this year: I haven't really scored many runs for Surrey. But I know what a good player I can be. I feel like I have so much natural talent with the bat and I felt like I was moving really well and hitting the ball really cleanly. It was just one of those days where it works for you.”
In the long term, his emergence as a batsman could allow England to make bold decisions away from home: if Atkinson is used regularly at No.8, they can let Chris Woakes play abroad without unduly affecting the balance of their team. In the short term, it has put them on the brink of a fifth straight victory and a second series win of the summer.
Matt Roller is deputy editor at ESPNcricinfo. @mroller98
