McCullum handed vice-captaincy for South Africa tour

Brendon McCullum, the New Zealand wicketkeeper-batsman, has been made the vice-captain for New Zealand's tour of South Africa.

The squad's general manager, Lindsay Crocker, said McCullum had displayed 'leadership qualities' on and off the field during New Zealand's ongoing tour match against a South African Invitational XI at Bloemfontein. He scored a vital 46 and was involved in a 100-run stand for the seventh wicket with captain Daniel Vettori to take New Zealand to 318.

"He gets around the other players and keeps them involved with what's happening. He was an obvious candidate for the role," Crocker told stuff.co.nz, a Wellington-based website, adding that the role was only for this tour and would be reviewed on a series-by-series basis.

New Zealand had not named a vice-captain when they flew to South Africa but McCullum was considered to be in the core group of the 15-man squad.