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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Sport
Simon Burnton at Pallekele International Cricket Stadium

Harry Brook relieved to lead England into last four after ‘the hardest winter of my life’

Harry Brook raises his bat in delight after scoring his century for England
Harry Brook raises his bat in delight after scoring his century for England. Photograph: Eranga Jayawardena/AP

Sometimes Harry Brook makes everything look easy but some of his recent experiences have been anything but painless, and after scoring a sublime century to steer his team into the World Cup semi-finals England’s white-ball captain described his past few months as “probably the hardest of my life”.

Brook endured a disappointing Ashes, scoring just two half-centuries and averaging 39.77, his second-worst in a Test series in which he has played more than a single innings. It was towards the end of his time in Australia that it was revealed he had got in to a drunken altercation with a nightclub bouncer in Wellington on the eve of the final fixture of his first overseas tour as an international captain, a controversy which has dogged him since.

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