KINGSTOWN, March 8: Australia vice-captain Adam Gilchrist returns to action after paternity leave on Friday refreshed, invigorated and with no plans to retire from either Test or one-day cricket after the World Cup.

Gilchrist missed the 3-0 defeat to New Zealand last month and arrived in the Caribbean late on Monday after the birth of his third child.

He watched Tuesday's opening warm-up match against Zimbabwe from the pavilion but will be back in action against England on Friday.

“I had a fantastic time off since the arrival of our third child,” he told reporters on Wednesday.

“Everything is going well so it's nice to have that little break from cricket and get that more important business of family well and truly sorted and now get back and focus on cricket.

“Everyone could probably have done with a little bit of a freshener, getting that little bit of time was very timely.”

Gilchrist is by common acclaim the finest wicket-keeper/batsman to play either Test or one-day cricket.

But he is now 35 and there has been speculation that the demands of opening the batting in one-day cricket as well as keeping wicket might prompt him to drop out of limited overs cricket, at least, after next month's final.

“I haven't thought about finishing after this,” he said.

“I have never been one to sit down and plot out my goals. It's just about playing the game and having the enthusiasm to do it, that's pretty much where it stays.

“I don't think now in my career is the time to start plotting things like that. If I do it probably tells me that I need that to motivate me.”— Reuters