County cricket exists to provide for the England team. But if the last few years have taught us anything, it's that what's good for one is not necessarily good for the other.

When international players are rested from the T20 Blast, the competition struggles to be the best it can be. Counties that invest in Kolpaks to bolster their squads do so at the detriment of promising younger cricketers in need of playing time for their development. A balance needs to be struck but rarely does it work out.

But after England completed a fine win against Sri Lanka in the second Test to take a 2-0 lead and the series - a victory in which 19 of the 20 wickets went to spinners - it felt right to acknowledge the part played by the domestic game. Specifically a dry 22-yards out in the West Country.

About three summers ago - perhaps more - Somerset decided to throw their bowlers a bone. Taunton had always encouraged runs, not least because of its dimensions. But as the club looked to push for that elusive Championship title, cultivating consistent wicket-takers to complement their plethora of runscorers.

Having looked at those coming through their system, they realised who they needed to put their stock in. Spinners. Their pitches would be curated to reward the turning ball. 'Ciderabad' was born.

To say they received criticism for the move would be an understatement. Their dissenters - opposition teams, players and their fans - were loud. Many questioned whether it was good for English cricket. Now, with a first series win in Sri Lanka since 2001, they have their answer.

Middlesex, in particular, were infuriated by the result wicket put in front of them in the last match of the 2017 summer. The defending champions at the time were comfortably beaten and subsequently relegated. A certain Jack Leach took nine wickets in the match.

Adam Voges spoke of the need to be a line which teams cannot cross. Middlesex's director of cricket Angus Fraser also branded the pitch "dreadful". The cricket liaison officers settled for a less dramatic "below average".

Had Somerset not encouraged spin and, instead, produced green seamers, then Leach, like most of his craft in domestic cricket, would have had to focus on other facets to prolong his career.

He might have had to take a page out of Ollie Rayner and Will Beer's book and focussed his winters improving his batting. Not just to hold up an end but score runs, too.

Perhaps, like England Women's Alex Hartley, he could have worked tirelessly at his fielding. The Lancashire spinner secured her place in last year's 50-over World Cup after drastically improving her ability in the outfield.

But even that doesn't guarantee a secure future. A year after winning the World Cup in 2017, Hartley is playing state cricket in Australia while England prepare for their semi-final in the women's World T20.

The plight of 27-year-old left-arm orthodox Ravi Patel highlights the lot of most English spinners. He played for the Middlesex in that 2017 Somerset match and took seven for 81 in the first innings and five for 92 in the second. Now, he is without a club after being released at the end of the summer.

Leach has sought to improve other aspects of his game. He is a very capable nightwatchman - or should that be opening batsman? - and, at stages during this series, fielded at point. But the reason Leach is a Test cricketer, one with a bowling average of 24.46 under one arm and a match-winning performance under the other, is because he has been allowed to embrace his primary skillset.

Over the course of 7,091 deliveries bowled at Taunton, he learned about patience. With those 139 wickets came an appreciation that, actually, it's not about spinning the ball big but spinning it enough. At Taunton, in that Somerset side, the burden of leading the attack was his to bear.

It was while falling down a YouTube wormhole watching videos of Rangana Herath that Leach picked up how to apply what he knew to Sri Lankan decks. The trick, as the great maser exploited over 20 years in the game, was subtle changes of length and varying where he was on the crease.the Somerset wickets and time burned in front of his laptop - culminated in Leach's pre-lunch spell on day four.

Defending a target of 301, Root turned to Leach to open from the rainforest end. It's a cliche, but he really did make every ball count: Sri Lanka had to play at all but three in an 11-over spell. Three edges were nicked, six shots found nothing but air and only one boundary was scored off him. A stumping, a sharp catch at short leg and an LBW also gave Leach his first three victims of the innings.

When batting got easier, he was able to control the run rate, taking that burden away from Moeen Ali and Adil Rashid. In turn, those two could focus on searching for wicket-taking deliveries. Moeen picked up Angelo Mathews and Roshen Silva. Rashid, with a bit of luck, nabbed Dimuth Karunaratne. Three big players sent back just in the nick of time.

"I think the three of them compliment each other beautifully," effused Root, as if he was talking about three sons. Leach's presence in the trio not only offers variety but it also gives Root comfort. He has rarely captained Moeen and Rashid better and that is, in part, because he now trusts Leach implicitly.

With that trust, he handed over to Leach to start proceedings on day five, with three wickets needed to prevent Sri Lanka getting those remaining 75 runs. While Moeen picked up the first two - he now has 159 Test wickets - fittingly Leach finished things off, taking a simple return bunt from No.11 Malinda Pushpakumara, to seal the match and a maiden Test five-wicket haul. There will be many more. Leach now has 13 wickets this series, with one match to go.

"I think the impact he's (Leach's) had, the way he's performed on these surfaces has been brilliant," said Root. "The way he's shouldered that pressure for someone who has not had a huge amount of experience.

"He's taken all the experience that he's had at Somerset bowling on those wickets at Ciderabad, or whatever they call it down there."

Here is a player who has been allowed time to find his place in the game. Who has been made to feel like spinners can be just that. That you do not need to be a "Jack of all trades" to make it to the top - you can just be a Jack of one. He has learned all this at a county that backed him by doing things differently. English cricket has benefited and in many ways, this feels like a victory for county cricket.

So, well done Jack Leach. Well done England. Well done Somerset.