Sussex boss so proud of Yardy (From The Argus)

Sussex boss so proud of Yardy

1:30pm Thursday 15th December 2011 in Cricket News By Steve Hollis

In the spotlight: Mike Yardy

Coach Mark Robinson has praised Mike Yardy’s strength of character after the Sussex skipper committed his future to the county for another two years.

Yardy signed a contract extension yesterday which will keep him at Hove until the end of the 2014 season and quashed any doubts over his ability to continue playing at the highest level.

The all-rounder endured a stop-start campaign in the summer after revealing he was suffering from depression in March when he flew home early from the World Cup in India.

Former Derbyshire captain Luke Sutton quit the game this week after admitting he had been living with the same condition but Yardy is determined to beat his illness and lead Sussex to further success.

Robinson said: “I don’t think it has ever been in doubt that Mike is a strong person. He refused to give in, faced up to his problems and kept coming back.

“He probably came back a bit early last season when some people may not have expected him to come back at all. But he was desperate to play again and was gutted we didn’t win anything last season.

“That shows how driven he is which is what makes him a such a natural leader but is also something he has to balance because of his situation. I don’t think it will ever be behind him and he is aware it is something he will have to manage for the rest of his life like Marcus Trescothick does.

“His strength of character makes him a natural leader but we shouldn’t forget he is a blooming good player in all formats too. He finished in great form last summer so we hope and believe he can push on next season.”

Yardy sat out the start of last season as he got to grips with his depression and took another four week break midway through the campaign after suffering a setback.

Murray Goodwin led the side in his absence for the majority of the time while Ed Joyce also filled in for one Championship match but Robinson insists relieving Yardy of the captaincy on a permanent basis to help his recovery was never an option.

Robinson added: “He likes to be captain and how long he stays captain is up to him. We will take it year by year but if he feels up to the job then he will stay captain as he has the full respect and backing of all the players.

“I’m sure it crossed his mind to step down as captain many times when he was in a bad place but the most important thing for any captain is to perform on the pitch. It doesn’t matter whether you are Mike Yardy or Chris Adams or Andrew Strauss, if you are not performing then you feel the strain more than normal.

“When Mike came back at the start of last season he wasn’t getting runs and as a result he felt vulnerable but he came into some great form towards the end of the year which just shows how strong a character he is.”

Yardy is the fourth senior player to commit his future to Sussex following Chris Nash, Matt Prior and Monty Panesar while youngsters Luke Wells and Ben Brown have also agreed contract extensions since the end of the summer.

Chris Liddle and James Anyon penned new deals midway through last season while all-rounder Luke Wright is expected to follow suit when he returns from playing for Melbourne Allstars in the Big Bash next month.

Robinson added: “We know where we are with our leading players which is great. We’ve had a lot of change over the last few years and this will give us the stability we need.”

Sussex have signed promising Jersey wicketkeeper-batsman Jonty Jenner.

The 14-year-old caught the eye playing for Jersey under-15s in the Arabian Cricket Festival at Sussex’s Academy ground in Blackstone during the summer.

Jenner, the son of former Jersey and Guernsey captain Ward Jenner, will travel to Hove for coaching while Sussex coaches will also travel to the Channel Islands to work with him.