Prior needs more balance

Matt Prior looked despondent in the final Test © Getty Images

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Matt Prior is facing the biggest challenge of his England career so far when he attempts to bounce back from the fluctuating fortunes of his first summer as a Test player.

The 25-year-old wicket-keeper batsman endured the full scale of emotions during his first full summer as a member of the Test line-up, ranging from the elation of a century on his debut at Lord's to the despair of his dropped catches and first innings duck in the final Test against India at the Brit Oval.

He has also suffered his fair share of criticism for his role in the brand of aggressive cricket favoured by new coach Peter Moores and the constant chatter he has provided behind the stumps in an attempt to unsettle the opposition batsmen.

Prior appeared to have emerged from that tough baptism to Test cricket by batting for 93 minutes to help save the final Test against India, withstanding the pressure to finish unbeaten on 12.

But Moores, who worked with Prior closely during his long spell as Sussex coach, believes the biggest challenge is ahead of him as he attempts to come through his recent crisis of confidence and establish himself as England's top wicket-keeper batsman.

Prior has a Test average of nearly 40 © Getty Images

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"He will have started the Test match excited about the challenge and then had a bad innings and that was really tough but the way he was in the second innings, he started to come out of himself a bit in the last two sessions," enthused Moores.

"He started to be a bit more of the character he is and I thought he kept well and lifted the team. He showed real fight and resilience and then for him to be there at the end of the match was a real feather in his cap.

"It's a tough place to play your cricket if you make mistakes. The key is whether he bounces back and goes forward. He can look back on the summer and say he has a Test match average close to 40 and he kept pretty well there.

"He's made some mistakes but he's learning and he's getting better at this environment. The challenge is whether he becomes mentally stronger from this game.

"If he does then at the end of it and if he gets through Sri Lanka as well then he can start to become one of those nuggety Test match cricketers that everybody wants."

Prior was certainly affected by the bad-tempered second Test defeat at Trent Bridge and the criticism of England's behaviour that followed.

Both Prior and the rest of the England side were noticeably quieter during the early stages of the final Test, but Moores remains keen for his side to remain aggressive in the field - providing they do not over-step the boundaries and uphold the spirit of cricket.

"Matt's got to be himself and there's a balance to everything and we all want that balance to be right," stressed Moores. "I know Matthew well and I know he's a good lad who respects the game and respects the people he plays against.

Prior had some tough times against India © Getty Images

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"He really wants to win and he's a competitor and that's what he needs to be. Maybe he did go a bit quiet to start with (in the final Test) but he will have balanced it up and he will have learned something in the process.

"We don't want to stop our players being aggressive and playing aggressive cricket because that's what we need to do.

"It has to be fair and honest, straightforward and competitive sport because we all like to watch it and we all want to be in it. That's what elite sport should be - you go in knowing it's going to be a good old scrap and the best team should win."

Prior now has the chance to re-establish his credentials in the busy one-day schedule facing England, which begins with the first of seven one-day internationals against India at the Rose Bowl and are followed by the ICC World Twenty20 championship in South Africa and another one-day series in Sri Lanka.

It is a shift in focus for England following their first home series defeat since 2001 and will give the coach and his fellow selectors time to assess their options before they consider the squad for the Test tour to Sri Lanka this November.

Among those being included for the first time this summer during that one-day programme will be key all-rounder Andrew Flintoff, who has been recovering from ankle surgery throughout Moores' first summer in charge.

It is a prospect that fills Moores with enthusiasm as he attempts to bounce back from the defeat in the one-day series against West Indies earlier this summer against an India side which should provide even tougher opposition.

"We want to get better at one-day cricket and we learned a lot in the three one-dayers against West Indies but we've got our chance to learn a lot more and Andrew is going to be available," said Moores.

"We're looking forward to getting him back in there. Watching him play over the last few weeks, he looks like he's got all his energy and passion back to play cricket which is fantastic because it will be a lift for Freddie to get him back in the fold."