Passion not a problem for Yardy
espnstar.com’s Rajarshi Gupta caught up with Sussex Sharks skipper Michael Yardy for an exclusive chat as his side prepares to take on NSW Blues.
A first glance of him reminds you of a quintessential English captain. No non-sense and affirmative, Yardy is just the man to lead a bunch of talented youngsters.
Having played six ODI’s for England, the southpaw knows what it takes to click at the big stage. Passion is just one of those traits.
That, Yardy assures fans, will not be lacking as Sussex prepare to open their Airtel Champions League Twenty20 campaign against the mighty New South Wales Blues.
“The Airtel CL T20 will be a huge motivation for us. Anything that our youngsters do here (in India) apart from winning the tournament will be a bonus.”
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Yardy knows his task will be cut out. Having led the Sharks to glory in Twenty20 cricket in domestic cricket back home, the skipper is sure his men can steak the show in the glittering cricketing extravaganza on show here.
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Though he admits it is the sub-continent players who are going to make a major impact on the Airtel CL T20, Yardy wants his team to grab this opportunity of playing some of the game’s greats.
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“This is the highest level below international cricket. We are proud Englishmen and we want to be in good Championship form throughout.”
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England are fast shaping up to be a crack ODI unit and the days of relying only on Andrew Flintoff and Kevin Pietersen now seem to be buried in the past.
Yardy could not agree more: “It will be good to show to the world that there are options apart from Freddie and KP. The teams participating are strong and it will be a challenge for the boys to live up to expectations.”
What will give Sussex the edge though is their all-rounders. A certain Dwayne Smith from the West Indies will be Yardy’s biggest trump card.
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“Our all-rounders are massive. We have Smith, who can be dangerous in all conditions and a few others who can do substantial damage.”
Yardy is a composed man and talks with a lot of poise, so when he talks of damage, you sit up and listen and begin to wonder what Pakistan international Yasir Arafat and Indian leggie Piyush Chawla can do on these wickets.
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“Yes, they are real hard characters and we have a lot of options. Things should get interesting for us as we move ahead.”
Like all other players in the bigger arena of T20 cricket, Yardy, not surprisingly has found the Indian Premier League attractive.
“The IPL is a very well run event and I am sure the three teams will do well as we go ahead. Indians don’t do anything by the half and I am sure the Airtel CL T20 will be an even bigger success.”
The tournament looks like being on the right track but for the Sussex show to begin, they will have to slay Goliath.
This is not to suggest that the Sharks are David but the impunity, with which the Blues blew the Delhi Daredevils away the other night, one wonders how the Sharks will come through.
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