Sussex 171 for 4 (Yardy 44*, Prior 34*) v Surrey
Scorecard

Richard Montgomerie shows some early-season form © Getty Images

Prior and Yardy had come together at a shaky 119 for 4, after Murray Goodwin and Chris Adams - two of the stalwarts of Sussex's 2003 Championship-winning side - had fallen in quick succession to the opening pair of Mohammad Akram and James Ormond. But together, and in their contrasting styles, they beat off a Surrey attack that was lacking the yeoman services of Martin Bicknell, and ensured that a truncated day finished with honours pretty much even.

Bicknell was forced to pull out of the match shortly before the toss, after suffering a minor tear to his right hamstring in Tuesday's practice session. He will undergo a fitness test ahead of Sunday's totesport League match against Yorkshire, although he is expected to be back in action again by the beginning of next week. Even so, he would have enjoyed the early conditions, as Ormond especially found a penetrative line and length after Adams had won the toss and opted to bat first.

Sussex nevertheless made the early running. Ian Ward, one of several players to have crossed the county line in recent seasons, exploited a short boundary at the Harleyford Road side of the ground to cut Akram for three fours in his opening two overs, while Richard Montgomerie got off the mark with a sweet cover-drive off Ormond.

Ward was well set but, on 22, he gave his innings away, spooning a simple catch to Richard Clinton at square-leg when a more forceful swing of the bat might have cleared both the boundary and the gleaming green seating of the swish new Vauxhall Stand (36 for 1). And Sussex were soon 51 for 2 when Rikki Clarke, sporting a funky new blond mop, struck with his third ball to find the edge of Montgomerie's bat.

On a slow but seaming wicket, a slow but sensible innings was called for, and Yardy, who made his maiden first-class century in the corresponding fixture at Hove last season, was the man for the job. With Goodwin alongside him, he doubled Sussex's total with a solid, unflashy performance, until Goodwin was blasted out by a jaffa from Akram, that bounced, jagged and took the edge of the bat.

It was a well-deserved wicket for Akram, who was a Sussex player last season, but was offered an irresistible chance for a transfer of allegiance: his best first-class figures of 8 for 49 - including a spell of 4 for 0 - came on this very ground in 2003, and were instrumental in Surrey's decision to snap him up.

Adams came and went in a hurry, as Ormond cramped him for room and forced an inside-edge onto the stumps, but the arrival of Prior injected some late urgency to Sussex's day. This is a man who has a higher calling in mind and at times he seemed to have too many shots for the conditions, as he flashed and missed, then flashed and hit, to finish unbeaten on 34 from 40 balls when the rain clouds closed in.

How they were out

Ian Ward c Clinton b Ormond 22 (36 for 1)
Shovelled pull to square-leg

Richard Montgomerie c Batty b Clarke 22 (51 for 2)
Grazed edge to keeper

Murray Goodwin c Batty b Akram 31 (102 for 3)
Bounced and left him

Chris Adams b Ormond 5 (119 for 4)
Inside-edge onto stumps

Andrew Miller is assistant editor of Cricinfo