McCullum to miss pink-ball prep due to Cairns case

Brendon McCullum will miss New Zealand's pink-ball preparations ahead of the Test series in Australia, which is scheduled to include the first ever day-night Test, due to his role as a witness in the Chris Cairns perjury case. The New Zealand captain will be in London to testify in the case, for which proceedings begin on Monday, while the rest of the team has a two-day training camp under lights with the pink Kookaburra ball in Hamilton.

Opening batsmen Tom Latham, speaking to Fairfax NZ, said the team will not lack direction in McCullum's absence. "We've got plenty of leaders in the group, there's plenty of senior players so we'll go about our business as if we would if he was there," Latham said. "Kane [Williamson] has captained us a little bit in the past, and there are plenty of other senior players.

New Zealand play three Tests in Australia, starting on November 5, the final of which be a day-night match in Adelaide from November 27.

The case against Cairns has been brought by the Crown Prosecution Service in the UK, stemming from what it believes to be criminal acts committed by Cairns during the 2012 libel case against former IPL chairman Lalit Modi. Cairns has been charged with perjury - effectively lying in court. Apart from McCullum, other high-profile witnesses called up to give evidence include former New Zealand players Stephen Fleming, Shane Bond and Andre Adams, and New Zealand Cricket CEO David White.