Thaindian News

London, Aug 7 (IANS) England wicket-keeper Matt Prior, who has played some crucial knocks in the ongoing Test series against India, attributed their success to new found “resilience” and “team spirit”.

Prior said when England were struggling at 124 for eight in the first innings of the second Test at Trent Bridge, his mind went back to 2007 when they faced a similar situation against India and ended up on the losing side.

“When we were 128 for eight in the first innings, and it felt like we could have potentially lost the game on the first day, my thoughts went straight back to ‘07.”

“That was a bad Test match for England and we attracted headlines for the wrong reasons - a crushing defeat and high jinks with jelly beans. This time it was very different and was probably the best win I have been involved in with England,” Prior wrote in his column in the Daily Telegraph.

Prior, who scored a century in the first Test at Lord’s, has been a vital cog in England batting in the series with 247 runs in four innings at an average of 82.33.

“We showed resilience at Trent Bridge against India and that is a reward for the hard work we put in to our preparation. Success breeds confidence, but you need something else to kick-start that. You can’t just rely on winning.”

“Our resilience comes from the amount of hard work we put in as a team. The precision that goes into our training for every Test leaves the guys feeling very confident before the match has even started.”

Prior attributed the success of the team to their meticulous preparation that has imbibed team spirit and made every member responsible for the team.

“We know, as a team, we have done everything we possibly can to prepare and the rest is down to a bit of luck and having your day. That comes from hard work in nets.”

“It helps to build our team spirit because you always feel confident someone will pull out a performance when we most need it. Thanks to the way we prepare, no one goes to the wicket feeling under pressure. They just go out and play their normal game. That shows the confidence the dressing room has to bounce back from a bad start and that is exactly what happened at Trent Bridge.”

Prior said he is happy to contribute to the team’s victory.

“Before the series starts I always look at the ‘keeper I am up against. You always want to beat your opposite number.

“Obviously MS Dhoni is a class act and it is a nice challenge to put yourself up against him. I am very happy with how it is going but the important thing is keeping the consistency going. That is the challenge for all of us now.”