The 23-year-old travelled with fellow Volts pace bowler Warren Barnes to Sydney earlier this month to play for Northern District Cricket Club in the New South Wales Premier Cricket one-day competition.
The pair were on loan at the club to complete their preparations for the New Zealand domestic season.
But while Barnes made his debut for the club last weekend, Rae was sidelined with a shoulder niggle.
He had an injection earlier in the week in the hope of playing this weekend but failed a fitness test yesterday morning.
Otago coach Rob Walter said a decision was on whether Rae would return home early was ‘‘pending’’.
Barnes has been named in the Northern District side for its game against Mosman. He will be hoping to sort out his run-up, which created some issue during his debut.
He conceded five no-balls but bowled a tidy spell at the death to help his side win by 102 runs.
Otago will name its captain next week. Opening batsmen Hamish Rutherford and Brad Wilson have led the side before and shape as leading contenders, while spinner Mark Craig and seamer Jacob Duffy are experienced campaigners.
