Matthew James Prior, also known as “Big Cheese,” is a former English cricketer who has represented his country in all formats. He was born on February 26, 1982, in Johannesburg, South Africa, and is mainly a test player.
He bats vigorously and is a right-handed wicketkeeper-batsman. He is the first English wicketkeeper to score a century in a Test match, and after Les Ames, he is the second-fastest English wicketkeeper to cross 1,000 test runs.
Background
Matt Prior was born in South Africa and immigrated to England at the age of eleven. In 2001, he enrolled at Brighton College and began playing cricket for Sussex County Cricket Club.
During his early years, he also played colts cricket at St Matthias CC. Before breaking into the national team in 2004 and the test team in 2007, he spent six seasons at Sussex.
Debut
On December 5, 2004, Matt Prior made his international debut against Zimbabwe in an ODI. He made 35 runs with Ian Bell before being dismissed by Ed Rainsford.
On 17 May 2007, he made his Test debut against the West Indies, scoring 126 runs off 146 balls in an outstanding innings. On June 28, 2007, he made his T20 debut against the West Indies, scoring 25 runs off 14 balls.
Rise to Glory
Matt Prior had two disappointing years behind the wicket and as a batsman until reaching the international frontier in 2004. His shorter style debuts were a flop. His test form, on the other hand, carried over to the subsequent matches since his debut.
He was competent behind the stumps, but he could do a lot more. He was then cut from the roster in 2007.
In 2008, he returned to the team and became a regular member of the test team as well as the ODI side for the bulk of the time.
He was one of the strongest batsmen in the 2009 and 2011 Ashes series, and he batted at number seven with unwavering precision. He was very offensive in his play, spinning the ball with venom and throwing in a few pull strokes. His batting ability changed dramatically, and he was able to hold down the spot in tests and ODIs.
Prior appeared in 79 tests, scoring 4,099 runs at a 40.18 average. He featured in 68 One-Day Internationals and scored 1,282 runs at an average of 24.18. He only played 10 T20s and was mostly used as a test player.
Low Points
Matt Prior’s national career was hampered by his mediocre wicket-keeping abilities. Behind the stumps, he was regarded as a “big talker,” and he often lost his spot to Tim Ambrose.
He was also embroiled in a dreadful incident at the Lord’s, where he broke a window out of rage. The ICC reprimanded him but did not impose a fine.
Retirement
Due to a long-term Achilles tendon injury, Matt Prior retired from all forms of cricket in June 2015.