World class fast bowler Shane Bond is still to step through the door which was opened for him today by New Zealand Cricket (NZC) to return to the international stage.
NZC chief executive Justin Vaughan today said his board will reinstate players who end all ties with the non-sanctioned Indian Cricket League (ICL) Twenty20 competition.
While a handful of the New Zealand players contracted to the ICL have reportedly done so, Bond is not one of them. Termination negotiations with his Delhi Giants team and ICL officials are continuing.
The Cantabrian, who turns 34 on Sunday, left for an overseas holiday today and was unavailable for comment.
His manager Leanne McGoldrick hoped Bond would soon be able to confirm his availability for New Zealand.
"It is certainly Shane's desire to return to international cricket and he's working towards being eligible for selection for the Black Caps," she told NZPA.
"In the meantime, we're still working through the contractural situation with the ICL.
"We'll make an announcement as soon as possible." The ICL has reportedly run into financial problems and players who terminate their contracts early may face uncertainty over the receipt of payments owed to them.
It is unclear whether the injury-prone Bond will make himself available for limited overs cricket only for New Zealand or whether he will also return to the test scene.
Among the fastest bowlers in the world in his prime, Bond took 79 wickets in 17 tests at an average of 22.4, with his last test played against South Africa in Johannesburg in Novemeber 2007. He took 125 wickets in 67 one-day international matches from 2002 to 2007.
The right-armer became ineligible for New Zealand selection last year when he joined the ICL for a reported annual salary of $US750,000 ($NZ1.2 million).
Bond played the domestic summer for Canterbury, where he showed impressive form in the one-day and Twenty20 competitions.
His anxiety to return to New Zealand colours was apparent in an interview with the Herald on Sunday newspaper.
"I am hoping something will happen soon," he said.
"My training is going really well and I want to get back into it."
The newspaper reported former New Zealand players Daryl Tuffey and Lou Vincent have officially turned their backs on the ICL while Andre Adams was on the verge of a termination.
