New Zealand Cricket has placed restrictions of the availability of the players for forthcoming cup matches to ensure they are sufficiently rested before the South African series starts in mid-February.

NZC has clumped the players into three categories. Those unavailable until the Shell Cup play-offs are Cairns, Simon Doull and Dion Nash; unavailable until the last round-robin match, McMillan, Daniel Vettori, Matthew Horne, and Adam Parore; and available from the ninth round of games, Harris, Gavin Larsen, Chris Drum, Roger Twose and Bryan Young. The restriction placed on the last group precludes them from playing in the eighth round of cup matches tomorrow.

Cairns, Doull, and Nash are fatigued and had injuries before the series against India, where they carried the greatest workload as the frontline pace bowlers.

McMillan, Vettori, Horne, and Parore have also been through the test and one-day series and a five-day break is deemed appropriate.

The last named group only joined the team recently, but will not be allowed to play today's final game against India and then play again tomorrow.

MacDonald said he wanted to speak to the Canterbury players individually, but accepted they would not be released.

``I've fought a few battles with NZC before and lost, so I don't see much point trying to fight this one. I don't know about these categories of being tired. It's not as if they have been working 100m down a coal mine,'' MacDonald said.

Meanwhile, bowler Warren Wisneski is a doubtful starter tomorrow after sustaining an injury against Wellington on Sunday.