WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) - Australia vice-captain Michael Clarke faced the news media on Wednesday for the first time since his split with fiancee Lara Bingle and said temporarily quitting the cricket tour of New Zealand to resolve a relationship problem was important.

Clarke left the tour before the third of five one-day internationals when Bingle, a 22-year-old bikini model, became embroiled in a dispute over the publication of nude photographs taken by a former boyfriend.

He rejoined his teammates in Wellington ahead of the first of two tests against New Zealand and after his split with Bingle became a major news story in Australia.

Clarke refused to discuss his private life at a news conference but said leaving his teammates to deal with personal issues was something he needed to do.