Prior: I may be noisy but I'll stick to spirit of cricket

In the midst of the 'Jellybean Test' at Trent Bridge, the following quote was apparently picked up by the stump microphone: 'I've got a Porsche, what car have you got?'

Vocal: Prior gives plenty of chat behind the stumps

It was not only pretty crass but it also spectacularly failed to take into account that Indian cricketers are treated as gods on the sub-continent and Sachin Tendulkar, for one, has a fleet of luxury cars.

Although the perpetrator was never definitively unmasked, one name kept recurring — that of Matt Prior, the wicketkeeper whose chirpiness behind the stumps last summer became almost as much of a talking point as his batting and glovework.

Prior is a player who has divided opinion but has become the focus for those who felt England crossed the line with their behaviour during that tumultuous match at Nottingham.

England coach Peter Moores simply suggested broadcasters turn down stump microphones but new ECB chairman Giles Clarke made it clear aggressive sledging would not be tolerated. Now Prior wants his say.

Fit again after breaking his right thumb, he flies out to Sri Lanka today with England and this time he is not aiming his comments at a batsman. He is happy to provide them for general consumption.

'Things are picked up on the field but not always accurately,' he said. 'You just mentioned a comment about a Porsche. I can tell you now that things attributed to me were wrong and on other occasions I was supposed to have made comments that other people made.

'I didn't make that comment as it was reported. I don't even own a Porsche. I'm happy with my Skoda Octavia.'

Prior is the epitome of the modern keeper as cheerleader and has perhaps been more warmly welcomed in the England dressing room than by those outside it who yearn for the more traditional talents of a Bob Taylor, Alan Knott or Jack Russell. Or even a Chris Read.

He started his Test career spectacularly last summer with a century on his debut against West Indies. But by the time of the third and final Test against India at the Brit Oval he found himself under pressure for inconsistent batting and wicketkeeping that did not quite measure up to the standards expected at Test level. Then there was his tongue.

'The stump microphone is there but this is professional sport and people want you to be passionate, to jostle for each yard and each session,' said Prior as he took delivery of his new, white Slazenger wicketkeeping gloves.

'You don't find people running after footballers during a Premier League match trying to pick up every word that's uttered. I could tell you what 11 Indian cricketers said to me when I came out to bat at the Oval under pressure, but I won't. I wouldn't repeat that.

'I went on to score 12 off about 64 balls and it was the crabbiest innings I've ever played. But I was proud of myself for coming through that trial unbeaten.

'People talk about how noisy I am but I've watched a lot of keepers and batted in front of a few who are far noisier than me. I don't think I did anything wrong and, most important to me, my coach, captain and team-mates were all supportive. No one ever told me to quieten down.

'I played the game for England last summer the way I have always played it. People even started talking about the spirit of cricket but I've never played in any way which I deem to be against the spirit of cricket. And I never will.'

Even so, Prior post-Nottingham did seem to tone down his act, at least for part of the final Test. The problem was that it seemed to sap his strength, like Samson losing his hair. Only Prior didn't have any to lose.

'Maybe that was sub-conscious,' he said. 'I did realise that I had gone a bit quiet and there was a point, after lunch one day at the Oval, when I went back to my normal self and I enjoyed myself much more.'

His performances seemed to grow in relation to the volume.

'Yes, there were some tough times but that happens in international sport and the important thing is how you come back,' said Prior. 'You can either curl up and shrink when things are not going well or knock your shoulders back, hold your chin up and fight your corner. That's the way I decided to go and I look back on the summer with huge positivity.'

Prior has never lost the support of his coach and mentor Peter Moores. Though he has not been awarded a central contract, Prior expects to re-claim his place from Phil Mustard, who replaced him during the one-day series in Sri Lanka while he recovered from his broken thumb.

He also knows that Moores' predecessor, Duncan Fletcher, wanted him instead of Read at the Ashes last winter following Sportsmail's serialisation of Behind the Shades.

'I was playing golf and I got a text from my dad saying, "Have you seen the Mail?",' Prior recalled. 'I thought, "Oh no, what have I done now?" But when I saw the paper it said Fletch would have picked me for the Ashes. It was nice to hear and it's nice that Mooresy has been talking of me as still being No 1, but it's all about performances. I'm averaging 40 in Tests but I will need to score hundreds to keep my place. Simple as that.'

And talk a good game.