Cricket: Cup dreams keep Harris motivated

Veteran New Zealand cricketer Chris Harris will be sidelined for the rest of the season but remains optimistic about his playing future.

The indefatigable all-rounder underwent surgery earlier this month after suffering a torn rotator cuff in his right shoulder, and expects to be out of action for another five to six months.

The only good news is that he finally received the chance to have Christmas at home - and that during the lay-off he will only miss New Zealand's two home series against Sri Lanka and Australia.

New Zealand face a four-month hiatus in their playing schedule after the Australian series in March, a break that will allow Harris - and possibly others such as Daryl Tuffey, time to recover from their injuries.

Harris said if everything went as planned, he would be jumping out of his skin to make a return when New Zealand's "off-season" ended next September. "Zimbabwe and South Africa are coming up in September and October, and that's obviously my immediate goal," he said.

"I still want to play in the 2007 World Cup and if anything, am thinking about the idea of maybe playing beyond that."

Harris said his reasonably good state of fitness and the fact that the shoulder injury was treated immediately meant the surgical procedure had proceeded smoothly, even though the tear in the tendon was bigger than first thought.

"Because they got on to the problem quite quickly, and the tendon retained a lot of its elasticity, it was a lot easier to reattach."