• ICC has also been in contact, says former all-rounder • Cairns' London barrister arrested and bailed in London

Chris Cairns was quoted in New Zealand on Thursday saying he had received contact from the Metropolitan police and from the International Cricket Council's anti-corruption unit but that he did not know what they wished to speak to him about.

The Met have declined to comment on the claims. The ICC had confirmed in December that it was investigating allegations of match-fixing, with the former New Zealand international Lou Vincent confirming at the time that he was cooperating with the inquiry. At that time, Cairns said he had not received any contact from the ICC in relation to its inquiry.

The Met also declined to comment on whether its officers were in New Zealand as part of a joint investigation with the ICC into match-fixing. The ICC said on Thursday that it was not aware of any fresh contact with Cairns.

The Met did confirm that a 49-year-old man, who is understood to be Andrew Fitch-Holland, a London barrister who gave evidence on behalf of Cairns in a libel case against the former Indian Premier League commissioner Lalit Modi in 2012, had been arrested on suspicion of perverting the course of justice.

The judge in the libel case found no evidence to support Modi's allegation that Cairns had been involved in match-fixing while with Indian Cricket League team Chandigarh Lions. Cairns has always maintained his innocence.

The Met said in a statement on Thursday: "We can confirm a 49-year-old man attended a central London police station on Wednesday afternoon where he has been arrested on suspicion of perverting the course of justice in relation to a civil case heard at the high court.

"He remains in custody at this time. As part of inquiries a search warrant has been executed at a residential property in Essex. Inquiries are ongoing and we are not prepared to discuss the matter further at this time for operational reasons."

The Met later confirmed that the 49-year-old man arrested had been bailed.