Yardy focused on last battle

Michael Yardy had one last major 'infantry' assignment to complete before he can set his sights on the Sussex captaincy next year.

Yardy will succeed Chris Adams after 11 years that have brought Sussex the only three County Championship titles in their history.

Before he begins to plan his tenure, though, he needs to concentrate on closing out the draw against Yorkshire at Hove - which ought to ensure both teams escape relegation from Division One as Kent began the final day of the season as strong favourites to go down.

But Yardy has predicted a "nervy" time as Sussex look to him, unbeaten on 60 out of 118 for two after they followed on 193 runs behind, to keep the ship steady.

In the hope the job can be finished - on the back of his fellow opener Chris Nash's hugely important second first-class century - the 27-year-old dared to look beyond 2008 to his and Sussex's prospects as a top-flight team in the years to come.

Michael Yardy knows he has big boots to fill when he takes over as Sussex skipper

Buy this photo

"I'm massively excited about the captaincy," he said, well aware he has big boots to fill.

"I'm taking it off a guy who is arguably one of the most successful in county cricket. There is obviously pressure with that. But it's exciting too."

Adams has led Sussex to two titles in the last two years, with the considerable help of prolific wicket-taking from Mushtaq Ahmed.

The Pakistan leg-spinner retired last month after a final season blighted by knee problems - and Adams announced after Sussex's subsequent NatWest Pro40 success that he intends to play as a batsman only next year.

"These are changing times at Sussex," Yardy noted. "The Mushtaq Ahmed era has finished. It was an unbelievable time for the club, but we're now moving forward.

"Everyone here has had a taste of a lot of success, and you just want to keep it moving forward and keep bringing them trophies if at all possible."

One of the players Yardy is hoping can help him continue the glory years at Hove is Nash, whose 106 yesterday allowed Sussex to scrape an all-important batting point, which took much of the pressure off.

"He played fantastically," said Yardy. "For a young man to get his second hundred under quite a lot of pressure, that is very well done.

"He's a really improving cricketer and an exciting cricketer - someone to look out for."