Cricket: Body tells Bond test time is up

Shane Bond has played 18 tests for New Zealand since his 2001 debut, 10 of them on the winning side. Photo / Getty Images

The heart was willing - shame about the rest of his body.

Shane Bond yesterday finally listened to the several years' worth of unsolicited advice he had received from his back, his knees and lately his abdominal muscles, and retired from test cricket.

It brought down the curtain on a spectacular, yet unfulfilled, career, but he will still be available for ODIs and Twenty20 internationals.

Bond, who made his test debut against Australia in 2001, took 87 test wickets at a world-class average of 22.09, but he knows he will be remembered as a man who was available all too infrequently for his country.

Bond laughs when asked how he will be remembered: "As someone who was injured a lot. That's probably fair."

"People will probably say I didn't reach my potential but I truly believe I reached my potential as a bowler.

"My longevity, or test caps, has been stymied by injuries. It's only 18 tests but it feels like I've had a long test career."

Bond's importance can best be measured by the fact that of his 18 tests, 10 were on a winning side.

What made this injury tough to take was that after the first test against Pakistan at Dunedin, where he played a man-of-the-match role in the win, Bond felt at the "top of my game, before I was cut off at the knees".

"I found out pretty quickly after I was ruled out of the series that the injury was more severe than what was first thought. I was pretty dark at that time, just pissed off, but I pretty much knew what my decision had to be. I just wanted to take a few weeks to think over everything.

"My initial feeling, that I was best to give away tests, has not really changed."

What was first deemed to be a 1cm tear in a stomach muscle has since turned out to be closer to 5cm. That pushed his rehabilitation time out to a point where he would not have had the bowling under his belt to contemplate being available for the one-off test against Bangladesh in February.

With the diet of one-day and Twenty20 cricket throughout January and February, Bond was not confident he could have made it through the two tests against Australia in March.

"There were a few people that were trying to say I would be okay if I managed it, but I'm really comfortable with my decision."

Bond, 34, sought the advice of captain and selector Daniel Vettori, long-time mentor and NZC general manager of cricket Geoff Allott, chief executive Justin Vaughan and manager Leanne McGoldrick before deciding.

Vaughan said he was disappointed, but understood the decision.

"Shane really showed his never-say-die attitude in his comeback this season, especially in the test against Pakistan - and I know how tough this decision has been for him," said Vaughan.

"Of course we're disappointed that he won't be part of the test line-up, but NZC supports his decision to focus on limited-overs cricket and hopes that this decision will prolong his international career."

Bond finishes his test career ranked ninth in the ICC test bowling rankings.

He has taken five wickets in an innings on five occasions, the most recent against Pakistan in Dunedin last month.

"There was talk that I couldn't bowl quick any more and that I wasn't the bowler I was.

"That was the highlight of that test for me. I knew I could still bowl fast and thought I was still the bowler I was a couple of years ago, so I proved that to myself.

"It almost made this decision easier. I made my point and now moving on to one-dayers I'm just as confident I'll do well in those."

For now Bond will steel himself for another gruelling rehabilitation campaign mixed with a dose of sleep deprivation. He has a young son, Ryan, who refuses to sleep past 5.30am.

"I'm living on coffee at the moment."

Bond remains committed to next year's world Twenty20 championship and the 2011 World Cup.

BOND'S GREATEST HITS

28-0-135-1 VS AUSTRALIA, HOBART, 2001

Unflattering figures, yes, but they don't tell a fraction of the story. Bond roughed up Steve Waugh beautifully before trapping him for a duck.

21-7-78-5 VS WEST INDIES, BRIDGETOWN, 2002

Bond mowed down Chris Gayle (73), Ramnaresh Sarwan (18) and Brian Lara (73) before mopping up the tail for a historic victory.

27.3-7-69-5 VS WEST INDIES, AUCKLAND, 2006

At 157-1 the Windies were cruising towards their target of 291. Bang, Sarwan was sconed on the head and retired hurt. Lara was bowled first ball and the game had changed for good.

13-2-43-3 AND 19.1-5-63-4 VS SRI LANKA, CHRISTCHURCH, 2006

Bond was pivotal in the visitors' first-innings 154-run capitulation, taking the prized wickets of Sanath Jayasuriya (5), Kumar Sangakkara (4) and Mahela Jayawardene (8), and followed up with four wickets and two run outs in the second.

27.5-4-107-5 AND 21-5-46-3 VS PAKISTAN, DUNEDIN, 2009

Bond's comeback and, ultimately, his swansong. Bond proved he was still a force with his five-wicket first-innings haul and proved he was still a match-winner with a crucial second-innings spell.