Hussain leads Hollioake tributes

Hollioake was part of the England side four weeks ago

England captain Nasser Hussain was moved to the brink of tears as he admitted the sudden death of Ben Hollioake now made the second Test against New Zealand "irrelevant".

Hussain only found out the tragic news at lunch on the third day, after the reports filtered through while he was batting.

All-rounder Hollioake, 24, was a member of England's one-day squad in New Zealand less than a month ago, but died in the early hours of Saturday at the wheel of his Porsche in Perth, Western Australia.

I asked them to be professional because that's how he'd react

Nasser Hussain

Players on both sides wore black armbands in tribute after the interval and flags at the Basin Reserve flew at half-mast.

A minute's silence is planned before the start of play on Sunday.

"This puts everything else in perspective," said Hussain. "It was very difficult to play today, but even the cricket is irrelevant.

"He was an England player four weeks ago and the cricket goes on, but something more important happened today than what happened out on that park."

Andrew Flintoff's black armband is clearly visible

Hussain admitted that getting his team motivated for the last two sessions of the day was difficult, which finished with New Zealand on 70 for one in reply to England's 280.

"I asked them when we went out in the field to be professional and not let our standards drop because that's how he'd react and that's the sort of bloke he was," he stressed.

"It's a small blow compared to what his family are going through, but it's a big blow for us in that dressing room.

"I think some people got the wrong idea about him because he was hyper-confident so they thought he was this cock-sure lad, but anyone who played with him would tell you he would be there for you all the time.

'Absolute tragedy'

"Even away from cricket he was there for you and it's an absolute tragedy that such a young, talented outgoing lad has gone - he had everything going for him."

New Zealand captain Stephen Fleming also paid tribute to the England star.

Hussain learned the tragic news during the lunch interval

"It was a sad day for international cricket in general," he said.

"Our dressing room was in shock when we heard what had happened at lunch-time.

"A number of our players played youth cricket with Ben Hollioake. He was a wonderful talent and a nice guy.

"It was a strange atmosphere, but it was definitely easier for us to get on with it.

"It affected the England players as it would to lose a team-mate like that, but we had to be pretty cold about it and just go about our work.

"We passed on our sympathies in a number of ways and I'm sure it's going to be a tough couple of days for them."