McCullum happy to get back to work

THREE questions, a very bat, and into this cricket Australia.

New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum patted Chris Cairns perjury trial questions back down the pitch in Canberra yesterday in his first public comments since giving his testimony in London last week.

Seated alongside Tim Southee, who will captain the Black Caps in today’s tour opener against a Prime Minister’s XI with McCullum sitting it out, the regular skipper wasn’t about to dwell on his time on the witness stand.

‘‘Yeah, it’s nice [to be back], obviously a really exciting series as well and just nice to be around the boys again. It’s good to be able to get back into the nets,’’ McCullum said.

Asked if the London return trip was a distraction while his teammates played Plunket Shield cricket and prepared for this much-awaited three-test series, McCullum said: ‘‘To a degree it has, but it had to be done.

‘‘But now I’m very much just focused on this tour. It’s a huge challenge for us as a team and a new stage in Australian cricket and it should be a cracking series.’’

And that was that, about courtroom matters, as Southee looked on for seven minutes before he was asked a question. ‘‘I thought I was going to get away with nothing,’’ Southee deadpanned.

Now it’s on to the business of hitting the nets and finding some form for McCullum, whose last international match was the Twenty20 international against England in Manchester on June 23.

McCullum, 34, had a straight tour of

stint What: 50-over warmup match Where: Manuka Oval, Canberra When: 4.20pm today (NZT). New Zealand: Tim Southee (captain), Tom Latham, Martin Guptill, Hamish Rutherford, Ross Taylor, Jimmy Neesham, Mitchell Santner, Luke Ronchi, Mark Craig, Doug Bracewell, Trent Boult. Prime Minister’s XI: Michael Hussey (captain), Cameron Bancroft, Joe Burns, Usman Khawaja, Adam Voges, David Hussey, Ryan Carters, Ashton Agar, Peter Siddle, Jason Behrendorff, Mark Steketee. with Warwickshire but was rested for the limited overs tour of Africa to freshen up for a summer including home and away series against the old foe, and potentially his 100th test in Wellington in February.

No, revenge for the World Cup final wasn’t on McCullum’s mind after the heavy defeat in the Melbourne decider in March.

The three tests, starting in Brisbane on November 5, presented a rare chance to measure themselves against Australia in a full series. McCullum expected it to be played on friendly terms, too, without naming retired gloveman Brad Haddin who was chief antagonist in the World Cup final.

‘‘I’m sure the series will be played in great spirits. We know Steve Smith and with Darren Lehmann as coach the teams will get on well; with healthy competition on the field.’’

No chance, says Ponting