Sherratt’s departure was confirmed on Monday, just six days before the URC opener against Lions.
Adams is confident that the loss of the head coach will not hit Cardiff’s hopes of improving on last season.
“He made a conscious effort to improve our training days and habits,” said Adams.
“It takes a while to break a bad habit and create a new one. What he has implemented is here to stay and there is a great group of senior players who hold everybody accountable to those standards.
“The foundations that he has laid are solid and I wouldn’t say that any hard work will be undone because he has moved on.”
Adams says forwards coach Van Zyl has stepped in “seamlessly” as Cardiff hunt a successful first block of the URC in which they face Lions, Connacht and Edinburgh at home and Munster and Dragons away.
They open up against a Lions side who finished 11th last season and were runners-up in South Africa’s Currie Cup.
“The Lions are a team that graft hard for each other, that’s evident when you watch them,” said Adams.
“They don’t have the superstars of the South African franchises but they are a tough side and we will have to be close to our best to get something from the game.”