Injured Black Cap Shane Bond has been forced to cancel his contract with English county Gloucestershire.
Bond faces up to six weeks on the sidelines nursing the knee injury which forced him out of New Zealand's tour of South Africa.
He was due to join compatriot Hamish Marshall at theCounty Ground after the three-test series finished next month but has been ruled out completely, Gloucestershire coach Mark Alleyne confirmed today.
"It would have been great to have him here, but when you make signings there is a chance of this sort of thing happening," Alleyne told the England and Wales Cricket Board website.
"Our season is not built around his being here or not here, so we'll cope with it."
The injury-prone Bond, who has taken 64 wickets in 14 tests, was forced to withdraw from his contract with Warwickshire in 2003 due to a stress fracture of the back.
Gloucestershire chief executive Tom Richardson said: "We believe he would have a made a significant difference on and off the field for us.
"We now need to find a replacement and, in doing so, will consider the balance of the team."
