England's Yardy appointed NSW Blues batting coach

Sydney: Former England all-rounder Mike Yardy was unveiled Tuesday as NSW Blues batting coach, with an emphasis on bringing through young talent for the Australian state side.

Yardy, 38, won 42 caps across both limited-overs formats and was part of the squad that won England's only global trophy when they beat Australia to win the World Twenty20 in 2010. He also won three County Championships during a lengthy career with Sussex before retiring in 2015 to take up coaching. Yardy, also a prominent mental health advocate after revealing his battles with depression, said he was delighted to be offered a role at NSW, one of the powerhouses of Australian cricket.

"It was an opportunity I couldn't afford to let pass by," he said. Yardy's recent work had focused on nurturing young batting talent with Sussex and England's Young Lions under-19 squad. NSW general manager of cricket performance David Moore envisaged a similar role in Sydney.

"We've got seven or eight really good players under the age of 21 at the moment that we think are going to be good," he said. "We think Mike is going to be able to add his experience, not just technically and tactically, but really how he thinks about the game, how he devises his innings."