Prior lives the dream

Matt Prior celebrates reaching three figures on his Test debut

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Matt Prior lived out his boyhood dream with a memorable century on debut at Lord’s, as England racked up a huge score against West Indies.

Prior’s unbeaten 126 was one of four hundreds - only the second time in English cricket history that they have managed that feat in one innings - and by the time bad light cut short his fun, the hosts had 553 for five on the board.

The 25-year-old became only the third England player to reach three figures on debut at the home of cricket, and the first wicket-keeper to do so for this country at any venue.

As he reflected on a second day of this first Test which saw Paul Collingwood (111) and his sixth-wicket partner Ian Bell (109no) add their hundreds to that of Alastair Cook, Prior could scarcely believe what he had achieved.

“What a fantastic feeling!” he said.

“For an English cricketer - for most cricketers - it just doesn’t get any better than that.

“To make your debut at Lord’s for England is just a boyhood dream - then for it to go like it went today is just unbelievable.”

From the moment he took guard for the first time in Test cricket shortly before tea to the one when he marched off with an unbeaten hundred to his name - in an unbroken stand of 190 with Bell - for Prior, it was 143 minutes of perfection.

“If I rewrote the whole innings again I wouldn’t change a thing,” he said.

Ian Bell salutes Matt Prior's achievement © Getty Images

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His successful formula involved thinking clearly, keeping his focus - and listening occasionally to Bell.

“Just watch the ball, concentrate - I wasn’t even looking at the scoreboard,” he recalled.

“Belly was brilliant at the other end, at times when maybe I was going at it a bit hard. He was a fantastic help.

“For me to perform I need to go out and be relaxed - and I was. I was very pleased with the way I handled my thoughts today and allowed myself to play naturally.”

Prior acknowledged too that much of the most important work so far in this Test was done before he got to the crease.

“As a team we have just played very, very well - and the innings of Cooky yesterday and Paul Collingwood today were just fantastic; Ian Bell too,” he said.

“When the ball was moving around a lot they laid the foundations for me to be able to go and play my natural game.

“It might have been a bit different if I’d been in at 60 for four or five.”

Paul Collingwood was one of four England centurions

Prior was watched at HQ by two people dear to him - and one more from a distance of almost 6,000 miles.

“My girlfriend and dad are here,” he said.

“My mum unfortunately couldn’t be - because my granddad is ill in South Africa - but I’m sure she’ll have been glued to the television.

“Probably knowing her, there’ll have been the odd tear. I’m sure she’s very proud.”

Inevitably less proud tonight was West Indies captain Ramnaresh Sarwan, whose team twice dropped Collingwood in the thirties - and were made to pay by the Durham batsman, and then by association Bell and Prior too.

“We said this morning that if we could get a couple of early wickets we might be able to get them out for a total of 350, then score 450 and put some pressure on them to bat again,” said Sarwan.

“But unfortunately we dropped a few catches - and they cost us.”

As for Prior, whose near run-a-ball hundred contained 16 crisp boundaries, Sarwan was well aware before this afternoon of the potential coming into the England side for the first time.

“I’ve played against him in county cricket - and I told my team before the Test match started he’s a very attacking player and looks to score all the time,” he said.

“Someone who looks to score all the time is very dangerous. He showed that today.”