Cairns out of South African tour

All-rounder Chris Cairns is to quit New Zealand's tour of South Africa and return home on Sunday, it was confirmed on Thursday.

Cairns, who has carried an injury to his right knee through the Standard Bank one-day international series since arriving in South Africa from Kenya two-and-a-half weeks ago, has given up what seems an increasingly hopeless struggle and will take no part in the three-Test series that will follow the sixth and final ODI at Newlands on Saturday.

He joins an ever-lengthening list of crippled New Zealand bowlers as Stephen Fleming's tourists attempt to recover from a drubbing in the one-dayers and avenge the 2-1 Test defeat suffered during Ken Rutherford's tour six years ago.

Cairns took the man of the match award in the final of the ICC KnockOut 2000 tournament in October with a match-winning century in the final against India in Nairobi and was seen as a key figure in New Zealand's South African campaign.

His absence will further deplete a New Zealand attack already shorn of Daniel Vettori and Dion Nash and currently carrying Geoff Allott who has a stress fracture of the lower back.