McCullum 'thankful' for still having part to play in CWC post being hit by Johnson's thunderbolt

New Zealand cricket team captain Brendon McCullum has claimed that he is thankful that he managed to come through after being struck by a Mitchell Johnson's thunderbolt in their clash against Australia and still had a part to play in the Cricket World Cup.

McCullum wrung his left forearm, winced and thundered on at Eden Park during the high-voltage clash against Australia, which New Zealand won by one-wicket, after he was struck by Johnson's menacing delivery.

However, the skipper survived to bat on, arm unbroken, and combined with their quickfire recent bowling performances it ensured that New Zealand remain fresh and on track to play the same 11 as far as they progress through this tournament, Stuff.co.nz reported.

New Zealand recorded a six-wicket win against Afghanistan on Sunday.

Ahead of the Afghanistan match, McCullum said that the first few seconds after being hit by the Australian left-armer, he was a little bit unsure, adding that he thought that he might have been in for a bit of trouble.

However, McCullum claimed that he came through OK, adding that sometimes one takes ones eye off the ball and it just shows in this game that one can quite easily get hurt. He said that he was thankful that he managed to come through and still has a part to play in this tournament.

The skipper said that if the worst had been the case then he still believes that New Zealand has got the squad and personnel and leadership in this group that not too much would have changed in terms of how they go about playing their game.