Chris Adams today revealed how a rival's recommendation helped Mike Yardy land the vice-captaincy at Sussex.

Adams, preparing to lead the county champions for a tenth season, chose Yardy ahead of Matt Prior as his No.2 after Prior had praised Yardy's captaincy on the recent England A tour of Bangladesh.

He said: "Both Matt and James Kirtley, who was also in Bangladesh, were very complimentary of how Yards captained the side out there.

"We think Yards is the right appointment but we have also stressed that it doesn't mean that he is necessarily going to be the next captain."

Yardy, 26, led England A to victory in both the Test and one-day series in Bangladesh and received glowing reports not just from his team-mates but also Peter Moores, the Academy director and former Sussex coach.

What appeals to Adams is that the pair's personalities should compliment each other to the benefit of the team.

He added: "We are different. I suppose I'm more similar to Matt. The vice-captain's primary role is to support me but when Yards leads the side he has to captain the team in his own style.

"He has very strong leadership qualities and over the last three years has developed into a fine player as well."

Sussex play their first pre-season friendly against Glamorgan at Hove on Monday.