Keith (48), who works for Ashford Handcrafts in Ashburton, won two bronze medals at the Asia and Pacific championships in December but missed selection for next month's Transtasman clash and the Six Nations at Christchurch.
It means her chances of making the team for World Bowls in December are slim.
"Yes, I was disappointed,'' Keith said while playing in the Women's Classic Pairs at the North East Valley Bowling Club yesterday.
"I was told I wasn't an international skip.
"But I won't give up. I'll keep trying. I want to get back.''
Keith made her international debut in the Transtasman tests against Australia in 2012 and has also competed internationally in the Asia and Pacific championships.
Her highlight was to win the world champion of champions singles title in Cyprus in 2012.
Keith has won eight New Zealand titles and is the holder of a New Zealand silver star.
Her gold star titles were in the national championship singles in 2012 and the pairs a year later.
Keith always has a relaxed manner on the green and her happy demeanour and enthusiasm for the sport is infectious.
This is the fourth time Keith has played in the Dunedin Casino sponsored Women's Classic Pairs.
She has won the event three times with three different partners.
Partners for the event are drawn by lot and Keith is teamed with Kim Gawn (Taieri) this week.
They struggled at the start and lost their first game to Beth Brown (Taieri) and Lynley O'Callaghan (Alexandra) 10-7.
They came back strongly to beat Sandra Bunt (Marlborough) and former New Zealand champion Dale Bourke (North East Valley) 11-8.
In the crucial third game, Gawn and Keith narrowly beat Christine Buchanan (Queenstown) and Carolyn West (Forbury Park) 10-9.
Buchanan, an accurate lead who has won 18 Central Otago titles, was in the winning team over the past two years.
Constant rain in Dunedin yesterday restricted play and a decision was made to limit section play to four games instead of five.
The fourth games were called off after just four ends when the greens became flooded.
These games will be continued today.
Only two teams can advance to the quarterfinals in each section.
At the end of the first day three teams had two wins in section 1.
Buchanan and West were leading with a differential of plus 29 and were followed by Bunt and Bourke plus 18 and Gawn and Keith plus 1.
Bourke is pitted against West in the final round-robin game.
Barbara Archer (Taieri) and New Zealand Development team member Sarah Scott (North East Valley) make up the only unbeaten team in section 2 with three wins.
The other unbeaten teams are Sharon McCaw (St Clair), Anne Bateman (Northland) and Jenny Dyhrberg, Janet Swallow (Taieri) in section three and Mary Riddell (Marlborough), Colleen Earl (Nelson) in section four.
The final round of section play will continue at the North East Valley greens from 9am.
The final is expected to start around 1.30pm.
