Are riding high
other on. As we grow as a team we’ll have different challenges and if we continue to keep getting better that’s the different pressure we’ll have to handle whenever it comes along. “It’s about being adaptable and we’ve shown we can do that here, shown we are not a one-trick pony in our own conditions any more and that should fill us with a huge amount of confidence going into future tours.” It is the openness and willingness of his players to buy into a certain amount of chaos that has been Root’s greatest achievement. He asked them to was, in a series full of big moments for a number of players. But none more so than Leach, who has had to wait almost a year for his second taste of international cricket because of injury. He has made the most of it with 18 wickets in three matches.
“It’s very special but I’m absolutely knackered!” he said. “It is a huge thrill to come out here and take wickets on spinning tracks. I had the first two Tests and bat with boldness and positivity, promising they would not be castigated for getting out if they committed to the plan. He was as good as his word.
There were four different No3 batsmen used in this series, but every player got on with the job and understood when things changed.
Senior bowlers such as Stuart Broad and Chris Woakes were left on the sidelines for much of the tour, but that was OK, and when Jonny Bairstow got his chance to return he grabbed it with both hands knowing bad luck had put him out but his displays would keep him in.
This fluid and adaptable squad approach is the hallmark of Root’s captaincy and he has got firm control of this team now, so that he can go and enjoy his wedding to long-term girlfriend Carrie on Saturday and then head off to the was like, ‘It’s hot’ and then I got here and thought, ‘Oh maybe it wasn’t that hot!’ Turns out Colombo is proper sweaty.
“It has tested me physically and all the guys aren’t really used to this, so it is even more special that we could put in good performances to get the win.
“There have been ups and downs to it, but to come out on top with a 3-0 result is amazing and it has been a real team effort.” Big Bash, safe in the knowledge that come the West Indies in January, more success is likely.
He said: “It’s been a complete squad effort. I said at the start that was going to have to be the case, whether it’s guys on their first tour in these conditions or the senior players.
“I felt from the back end of the summer and that series against India that I was growing into the role of captain very nicely and doing things very differently – probably radically by some people’s views.
“The way we’ve gone about things here, having to drive that and seeing everyone really accept it and buy into it has filled me with a huge amount of confidence.”
It has been a huge year for Root and the Test side to go from 4-0 losers in Australia to 3-0 winners in Sri Lanka, and the emergence of the newer MARCH 1963 faces such as Foakes, Leach and Sam Curran has played a huge part. But if there is one big and obvious difference between the team in Australia and the side now, it has to be Stokes.
“We all know that at any stage he can turn a game on his own,” said Root. “He always gives absolutely everything and he’ll never shy away from any challenge put in front of him.
“With bat and ball throughout the last couple of games, he’s adapted to different roles. He’s a complete team man, he sets a brilliant example to the rest of the group and is a great leader within the dressing room.
“It would be great to see him perform out in Australia. He’ll really enjoy those conditions, the challenge and everything about an Ashes series having done pretty well last time. He’ll be dying to get back out there at some point.”
Lee Harvey Oswald buys a rifle via mail order. Eight months later, President John F Kennedy is assassinated.