BRISBANE (Reuters)
New Zealand left-arm seam bowler Shayne O'Connor suffered a recurrence of a knee injury during the first Test with Australia that could threaten his chances of finishing the match or even continuing the tour.

O'Connor was treated at the Gabba ground after he felt pain in his right knee before being taken to hospital for more tests. He had bowled just two balls of his 18th over when the players scurried off the field as the heavens opened but O'Connor did not return when play recommenced.

New Zealand manager Jeff Crowe said O'Connor had gone for an ultrasound and had also been ordered to see a specialist on Saturday morning. "It looks like a recurring injury that he's had with tendinitis," Crowe said. "It's quite a sad state of affairs, he's very disappointed. He's put a lot of work in and this has happened."

O'Connor has had problems with his knee before but looked to have the injury under control. New Zealand's other frontline bowlers, Chris Cairns, Dion Nash and Daniel Vettori are also on the mend after injuries.

"Shayne probably shapes up as fitter than anybody in the statistics. He's certainly in our top tier of player fitness, he's a hard worker," Crowe said. "He's as fit as he's been and he's had no problems at all until today."

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