Chris Adams today told his latest Sussex matchwinner: "You could play for England."

Mike Yardy made a career-best one-day score of 98 not out and took three handy wickets as Sussex opened their C&G Trophy campaign with an efficient five-wicket win over Surrey at the Oval yesterday.

Yardy shared another big stand with Murray Goodwin, this time worth 156 in 27 overs for the fourth wicket, and was two short of his century when Robin Martin-Jenkins fired the clinching boundary with ten balls to spare.

It was another landmark performance in Yardy's solid but unerring progress as an all-rounder and Adams was happy to predict even better things.

The Sussex skipper said: "Michael has worked very hard at his all-round game and has given himself every chance of going on to the higher level at some stage.

"While I'm delighted he is not involved in the A team next week, performances like that will enhance his chances of getting involved in that sort of game and the next level is obviously full international.

"Duncan Fletcher will tell you he is desperate for somebody who can bat in the middle order and bowl spin of a decent standard so he is in with a chance."

Yardy has not exactly exploded on to the scene but Adams said: "Two years ago he made a decision that he wasn't going to just be this solid bloke who's hard to get out, he's going to add some flair to his cricket.

"He completely changed his technique which allowed him to hit the ball to different areas. That was the start of it.

"He has built tempo at the crease and learnt how to build an innings and that is exactly what he showed here."

Yardy hit 11 fours and one six and his last two scoring shots, a manufactured extra cover drive and a fine leg glance off Tim Murtagh, highlighted his growing repertoire in what was a key win for Sussex.

Contrary to what the A-Z might tell you, it is an awfully long way from The Oval to Lord's. At least it is when you start your C&G campaign facing a free-scoring Surrey batting line-up at a sparsely populated Test ground in late April knowing you need to win a ten-team group to reach the showpiece at headquarters.

The new competition format seems designed to set up a plethora of meandering, meaningless mid-season matches, which makes this win, and a similar result against Middlesex at Hove today, so important.

Sussex have all the elements of a decent one-day side and the great thing about yesterday's win was that it was achieved without needing heroics from James Kirtley and Matt Prior on their first outings of the season.

Kirtley, with his shortened run and remodelled action, went for 38 in an initial fiveover spell from the Vauxhall End, including 18 in one over as James Benning opened fire.

But he came back for one tight over at the death and bowled Ali Brown with a low full toss as the batsman swung across the line.

Kirtley also had the satisfaction of holding a steepling catch offered by Rikki Clarke on the legside boundary as the hosts, having won the toss, came up short of what had looked like being a score of 300.

Sussex could be delighted with the way their bowling and fielding held up in what could have been a punishing last ten overs or so.

Prior's comeback innings was a non-event, edging a simple catch to keeper Batty off Azhar Mahmood as Sussex slipped to 7-2.

Goodwin and Adams put on 51 and the skipper had just hit three fours in a wayward Clarke over when he was snaffled by Batty, standing up to medium-pacer Murtagh.

Surrey's makeshift attack was pretty toothless after that, some of their fielding shoddy and Sussex took full advantage.

Goodwin hit 11 fours in his 107 balls and will feel he should have gone on to reach three figures rather than hole out on the square leg boundary.

But Sussex, and their allrounder, had done the hard yards by then.