A missed opportunity as deference is shown.

So Joe Root has kissed the ring and Stuart Broad (and Jonny Bairstow) will return for the final test of the Sri Lanka series. It's not really surprising that Root and Bayliss are showing deference to two of their senior players - they are still likely to be important players going forward and to leave them out again may well have caused ructions in the camp. I can't help but feel that this is a missed opportunity to blood Olly Stone in what is effectively a dead rubber. We know what Broad can do; he's average away from home and has limited value on flat wickets. He also will possibly be retired by the next time England play in Asia. We don't know what Stone can do. Surely he could benefit from the experience. Chances are like the first two tests, the fast bowlers will have minimal influence on the game, so there is no great risk to playing Stone - he just won't bowl much if he bowls badly. England's main problem still remains the ability to win on flat wickets; The batsmen don't have the mentality and/or defense, and the bowlers lack penetration and variety. What chances a debut for Stone when England are desperate and chasing a series in the future? As an aside quite why they had to name the team two days in advance of the game is missed on me.

Captain Satisfaction.

It must certainly be a satisfiying test series win for Root in particular. Playing without Cook, Bairstow and Broad, and with only minimal impact from Anderson, Root's position as captain and his authority over the group will only strengthen. Defending two lowish totals in fourth innings against India in the summer will have also massively increased his confidence. 

It's better to be lucky than good.

Bairstow getting injured may well have been the defining moment of the series. It allowed Ben Foakes to come into the squad, and then the team, and to put in a man of the match performance in the first test. For all his quality Bairstow has gone 11 tests in Asia without scoring a hundred, and his keeping whilst serviceable does have the odd mistake in it, especially when keeping to spin. Foakes came in and perfectly complimented those around him whilst finding a more natural pace to bat at than anyone else in the squad. Bairstow, like Stokes, fights hard in the conditions of Asia, but is never going to be prolific in the conditions. Foakes is the more natural player in the conditions with a solid defense and ability to accumulate in a risk free manner. Foakes may still not have made the team were it not for Joe Denly's troubles in the warmup games. Denly was seemed to be groomed for a position at 3, but in the end they fancied Foakes to score more runs than him. It never hurts to win the toss either!