Yet at Lord’s, he lived up to his promotion to reach 74 not out on Thursday evening, twice lofting Prabath Jayasuriya over mid-off and pulling Lahiru Kumara’s tired short ball over midwicket. “Being at the other end when he hit those straight sixes, they were unbelievable,” Root said, laughing, at the close of play. “It’s like watching someone like Jacques Kallis play.”
It only took him 22 balls to convert his overnight score into a hundred, though not without a scare. After hitting the first two balls of the morning for four – a flick off the pads and a punch through cover – he was given out lbw by Paul Reiffel, only for a review to save him, with the ball shown to be missing leg. Marcus Trescothick, England’s batting coach, punched the air in relief on the balcony.
Atkinson showed no such emotion, characteristically unflappable as he cruised to three figures. He has worked hard on his basics with Surrey’s coaches Gareth Batty and Jade Dernbach, trying to stay as still as possible with his eyes level on release. His practice came to fruition with the shots that took him from 95 to 103, crisp drives either side of mid-off.
Finally, Atkinson allowed himself to smile, beaming as he charged towards the pavilion with fists clenched. His father, Ed, watched in disbelief from a hospitality suite in the Grandstand, and his team-mates stood to applaud from the balcony, all grinning as they shared in the unlikely success of a man averaging 6.71 in the County Championship this season.
Atkinson had dinner with Zak Crawley and Harry Brook on Thursday night, and was gently ribbed by them about the prospect of reaching three figures. “There was a bit of pressure on from them, but thankfully I got there,” he said. “It was just pure elation. I was so happy, so relieved. It was a pretty surreal moment.
“I was pretty happy [last night],” Atkinson added. “I’d scored 70-odd already, so I tried to not put too much pressure on myself: if I got out, I got out. I just wanted to continue to play the way that I played yesterday. Thankfully it came off for me today. I feel like I hit quite a few boundaries today, so it was nice just to get there quite quickly this morning.”
That Broad averaged 15.64 after that hundred, with eight fifties and no hundreds in his 199 subsequent innings, should be a reminder that Atkinson will not always have things this easy. For all his poise, he was up against a four-man attack with 57 previous Test caps between them: batting may look a little less straightforward next year when he comes up against India and Australia.
Atkinson, however, does not seem the type to get ideas above his station, and made clear that he is not looking for a promotion. “I’m happy at eight; eight is good,” he said. “I haven’t thought about it too much… obviously missing Stokesy this series gave me the opportunity to bat No. 8, and thankfully I scored a hundred. Going forward, obviously I’d like to bat as high as possible.
“I’ve been frustrated with my batting this year: I haven’t really scored many runs for Surrey at all. But I know how good a player I can be. I feel like I’ve got so much natural ability 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 comes off for you.”
In the long term, his emergence with the bat might enable England to make bold decisions away from home: Atkinson becoming a regular contributor from No. 8 would empower them to leave Chris Woakes out overseas without unduly compromising the balance of their side. More immediately, it has put them on the cusp of a fifth win in a row, and a second series victory of the summer.
Matt Roller is an assistant editor at ESPNcricinfo. @mroller98