Chris Adams hasn't taken long to start enjoying life down under.

The Sussex skipper is spending the winter in Australia playing for the New South Wales University club in the first division of the Sydney Grade competition.

And he wasted little time in making his presence felt at the crease, scoring an unbeaten 109 last week to help his new club beat North Sydney and pick up their first points of the season in their sixth match.

Adams and his family are relishing life in Sydney where he has an apartment just two minutes from the beach.

When I caught up with him a couple of days ago he had just been for a look around the world famous opera house with his wife, Sam, and their two young daughters.

With temperatures touching 30 degrees it has been hard to resist the temptations of the beach, but it is not all rest and play for Adams.

He has a regular daily two-hour training routine at a local gym and swimming pool as well as coaching commitments to his new club.

It certainly beats a winter in dreary old England where the temptation to brood over Sussex's disappointing 2000 campaign would never have been too far away.

Adams said: "I have always identified with the Australian way of things, both in their lifestyle and of course their cricket and I'm having a really good time." .

"We've got a nice apartment not far from the beach, the club have laid on a car and the standard of the cricket I'm playing in is excellent."

Adams has succeeded Ian Salisbury as the overseas professional at UNSW. The former Sussex leg-spinner must wish he was still there after struggling on England's tour of Pakistan.

Adams' unbeaten century came after he'd made 27 not out in the first innings against North Sydney.

He said: "I'd say the standard is roughly on a par to our second XI cricket. But a lot of the State guys go back to their club sides to play at weekends and the Australian Test players also turn out now and again. Michael Bevan played for Manley last weekend and got 88 and he's just become the leading run scorer in domestic cricket in New South Wales which won't come as a surprise to our supporters. I've seen him a couple of times and he's looking forward to coming back to Hove in 2002.

"The wickets are excellent. I'd say they were better than those in England and the cricket is certainly more competitive than the County Championship.

"There's quite a bit of sledging, but I don't mind that and the players on both sides congratulated me when I got my hundred."