By Martin Gough

Panesar was back in county training 10 days after the India tour

Spin star Monty Panesar realises it is important he does not get carried away by his success with England in India.

And he is keen to make a strong start with Northamptonshire to gain a Test place against Sri Lanka and Pakistan.

"Winning the Test match in Mumbai was a special moment for us as a team and it was brilliant to get the draw in the Test series," he told BBC Sport.

"I've been trying to focus on my cricket, keep my feet on the ground and not to get ahead of myself."

A high-profile call-up as the first Sikh to play for England, Panesar burst onto the Test scene with the wickets of India greats Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid in his first game.

And he made up for a high-profile fielding blunder by taking a catch in the deep as England won in Mumbai (Bombay) to come back from 1-0 down and tie the series.

Just 10 days after his return to the UK, though, he was in training with his Northants team-mates at Wantage Road.

In the last couple of years we've done really well in the one-dayers and hopefully this year we can push on further and maybe get a trophy Monty Panesar

They have been watching with interest as their young left-armer was welcomed as the next big thing in English cricket, and instantly gained a high profile in India, where his parents were born.

"They have a bit of a laugh but I'm really enjoying being back and training with everyone," said Panesar.

"It's not that hard to recognise me with the beard and the bandana!

"But people follow the game quite religiously out there and it's nice to be somewhere they have a passion for cricket."

Giles wary of threat from Panesar

Panesar played only eight four-day County Championship games last year, but took 46 wickets and an average of 21.54.

Part of that success is down to his club's tendency to prepare turning tracks, though, and the 23-year-old is looking forward to playing more games away from home.

"The [home] wickets do help when they turn but in a way it can put pressure on you because you're expected to take wickets every ball," he argued.

"I've got to keep trying to adapt to different conditions and try to learn from players at Northants who are very experienced in the first-class arena."

Occasionally criticised for his batting and fielding, Panesar played just a single limited-overs game last season.

Panesar dismissed Tendulkar and Dravid in his first Test

It is an area he hopes to see more action in, especially because the signing of South African Lance Klusener means Northants will be a strong one-day side. "Hopefully I'll get a chance at the one day side," he said.

"Lance Klusener's an exciting cricketer who hits the ball out of the park so it will be exciting to see him bat this year.

"In the last couple of years we've done really well in the one-dayers and hopefully this year we can push on further and maybe get a trophy."

But he dismissed the suggestion Northants are one-dimensional, saying: "We were only seven points off [Championship] promotion so hopefully we can push a bit further there.

"We've got a young squad, it's exciting with a lot of energy and hopefully we can put that on the field and do well."

With first-choice spinner Ashley Giles struggling to recover from a hip injury, Panesar could easily be part of England's Test plans in both the short and long term.

But after a strong start he must now consolidate, and he remains very down-to-earth.

"There has been attention but I just try to do as much as I can and focus on the game," he added.