Amid the Wellington fallout, Brook led England to important ODI and T20 series wins in Sri Lanka, as well as the semi-finals of the World Cup that followed. His own form was superb. In the maelstrom, he drew on an experience from three years earlier.
In 2023, his only season in the pressure cooker of the Indian Premier League (IPL), Brook struggled. After his one significant score for Sunrisers Hyderabad – admittedly an unbeaten century – he said he was glad to “shut up” supporters that had been “slagging me off”.
“I got into a little bit of a rabbit hole with scrutiny and social media when I was at the IPL,” says Brook.
“It didn’t help me as a person on the field or off the field. I decided to, not stay away from social media, but also not go out of my way to look at it.
“On the other hand, I actually feel it’s a little bit of a compliment if people are giving me scrutiny and have an opinion about my game.
“I know it’s not a nice thing to see people slagging you off, but it means people care and people think I can put in a better performance than I have done that day.”
There are comparisons that can be drawn between Brook and Stokes. Maverick players from working-class backgrounds, often finding themselves outnumbered by the well-to-do members of the dressing room.
But, like Stokes, Brook is authentic in the way he plays and speaks, even if that can get him into trouble. One example would be Brook’s “who cares” line about batters being caught in the deep after an ODI against Australia two years ago.
“I would say that I’m an extremely honest person,” says Brook. “I’m honest with myself and honest with my game.
“A lot of people say honesty is the best policy. I probably have got into trouble a few times being too honest.”
Authenticity bleeds into Brook’s batting, for better and worse. He is probably the most thrilling batter to wear an England shirt since Kevin Pietersen and no batter with at least 3,000 Test runs has scored more quickly than Brook, whose strike rate is almost 87 runs per 100 balls.
But Brook can delight and frustrate in equal measure, nowhere more so than on an Ashes tour when an average just under 40 was a disservice to his ability.
Costly crimes included his drive at Scott Boland in the calamitous second-innings collapse in the first Test and trying to hit Mitchell Starc for six over extra cover in the first innings of the second Test. “Shocking shots” were how Brook described them in Australia.
“If supporters get frustrated, imagine how frustrated I get,” says Brook.
“It’s something I’ve been really trying to work on, trying to assess conditions quicker, and read the surface better. To go out there knowing what shots are going to be hard and what is going to be easier.
“I practise every single shot and have done since the age of eight. In the nets, I’d do a 360 challenge with my dad. He’d throw balls and I’d have to try to hit it to a certain place: that corner, then that corner.
“I have the ability to hit it everywhere, I just have to figure it out quicker in games.”
