Interview: Matt Prior

By Matt Prior England wicket-keeper

My performance at The Oval has been criticised and all I would say to that is I am still learning.

I am still new to Test cricket and mistakes do happen - we're all human.

The other thing I would say is that only a few weeks ago I made a hundred at Lord's on my debut, and then at Trent Bridge I took five catches in an innings, both of which were brilliant experiences.

You're not going to every day walk out and feel a million dollars

And I want to have that feeling of getting a hundred again, to take five catches again but then I got nought and drop a high-profile player like Sachin Tendulkar and those are feelings I don't want.

But it's been a huge learning experience and it's going to make me much stronger as a player and as a person.

To come away from this series with the runs I made is disappointing but you have to look practically at what happened.

They bowled very well and in two of my innings I got a couple of very good balls but we are paid to keep good balls out so that's no excuse for a professional cricketer.

I have still felt in really good rhythm.

Maybe at Lord's in the second innings I could have gone on to get a good score but Zaheer Khan bowled me a very good ball on 42 and I happened to edge it.

There's always things you can work on, improve on in your game. You're never the finished article.

I am my own biggest critic and I'll work very hard with [England coaches] Peter Moores and Andy Flower and any other people I can to make sure I do make improvements.

But I don't feel I have to suddenly criticise or scrutinise myself massively.

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This week has been the hardest week in my cricketing life without a shadow of a doubt, but I came off the pitch really happy on day four with the way I had gone, with the way I was as a person and as a team-mate.

I was still giving plenty of energy to my team-mates and to the bowlers.

I had to prove to myself that when you have your rough times all you can do is get your head down and fight hard and that's what I aim to do.

You're not going to every day walk out and feel a million dollars.

That innings of 12 off 60-odd balls at the end of the match wasn't my most fluent or pretty, but it was a battle.

There's going to be stress, there's going to be pressure, there's going to be tensions. But all you can do is stand there and fight your corner.

I'll take a lot from the fact that I did get through it.