Prior on brink of return after injury

England wicketkeeper Matt Prior insists he will be ready for the Test series against Sri Lanka, and is looking to make a comeback from his Achilles injury in the next County Championship game for Sussex.

England wicketkeeper Matt Prior insists he will be ready for the Test series against Sri Lanka, and is looking to make a comeback from his Achilles injury in the next County Championship game for Sussex.

Prior has only been able to play in one Championship match this season, causing worry ahead of the Tests in early June, but he has been working on various treatments, including at football club Brighton and Hove Albion, to ensure his fitness.

Prior, having scored a ton in the one game he played, said: "I am quite confident that I will be playing against Middlesex in the next Championship game whether that is as a batsman or a wicketkeeper.

"I am very close. It has been a very frustrating injury in the way I have gone three steps forward and five back but it is certainly making progress and the last few days have been fantastic from that point of view.

"The thing about an Achilles injury is that no one really knows exactly what is the best way to treat it. I'm trying everything I can though.

"Brighton and Hove Albion have been fantastic letting me use their anti-gravity running machine and I've been in at 8am most days in the pool with the physio so I can get back on the field as soon as I can."

If Prior is not fit in time for the Sri Lanka encounter, the selectors will have to pick between Jonny Bairstow or Jos Buttler to fill the wicketkeeping slot, with the latter yet to be handed a Test cap.

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