McCullum confused by stories of rift as Stokes returns

Head coach Brendon McCullum said he remains "good friends" with England captain Ben Stokes and the pair have "no idea" why rumours of a rift have emerged.

The pair reunited on Tuesday for England's crucial deciding Test against New Zealand after Stokes missed the second following an incident in a London nightclub.

Both McCullum and Stokes had previously denied their relationship was strained during the 4-1 Ashes defeat in Australia, and McCullum has faced questions about their partnership during Stokes' absence.

At Trent Bridge, two days before the third Test against New Zealand, McCullum revealed the pair spoke face-to-face on Tuesday morning.

"I said: 'Do you know where this has come from, the conversations around our relationship over the last six months?'" explained McCullum.

"He said: 'No, I have no idea.' I said to him: 'As far I'm concerned, I consider you a good friend.'"

Stokes and pace bowler Gus Atkinson were made unavailable for England's heavy defeat in the second Test during an investigation into a breach of the team's midnight curfew following victory in the first Test at Lord's.

They were present when a member of England security staff was struck by a Saracens rugby player.

Both have been cleared to rejoin the England team for the third Test, with Stokes returning as captain.

After England made five changes to their team for the second Test, Stokes and Atkinson are two of four changes for the third, as the home side move back towards the XI that won the first Test.

Spinner Shoaib Bashir and wicketkeeper Jamie Smith, who has been on paternity leave, also come back in. Ollie Robinson was man of the match at Lord's but missed The Oval encounter with a knee problem. Robinson is fit, yet misses out as Jofra Archer keeps his place.

James Rew, Jordan Cox, Matthew Fisher and Sonny Baker are the four players omitted.

Two days before the second Test at The Oval, McCullum gave a sombre media conference, when he repeatedly spoke of his "worry" and "concern" for Stokes.

However, Durham's county head coach Ryan Campbell later said Stokes was in "good spirits" and the county's chief executive Tim Bostock said he was "bemused" by McCullum's comments.

England XI for third Test v New Zealand: Ben Duckett, Emilio Gay, Jacob Bethell, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Jamie Smith, Ben Stokes (captain), Gus Atkinson, Jofra Archer, Josh Tongue, Shoaib Bashir.

On Tuesday, McCullum said: "My assessment was that I was slightly concerned, worried, now my assessment is that he looks great and is ready to go.

"He looks fantastic, he looks ready to go, he's enthusiastic about the week and obviously from our point of view it's nice to have the band back together.

"It's been a real privilege for me over the past four years to work in intimate detail and as a partnership alongside Ben. I look back on that fondly about how tight we were as a group and how tight we were as a pair. Anything outside of that, it's not really up to us. Ben and I are tight."

England trained in Nottingham on Tuesday afternoon, a session that began with Stokes and McCullum embracing. They were engaged in discussions with selector Marcus North, with England due to name their team later in the day.

In his absence from the England team, Stokes played two days of Durham's County Championship match against Northamptonshire.

The 35-year-old's score of 95 at Chester-le-Street was his highest in any cricket since last July.

"I thought he batted brilliantly," said McCullum. "He actually texted me saying, 'have you seen the highlights?'

"I said I had, and he said, 'I'm back'."

-BBC