SHANE Watson will not be making his Hampshire Cricket comeback in 2016.

The Australian all-rounder had been offered a contract to play at The Ageas Bowl next summer, over a decade on from his last appearance for the county.

Watson recently announced his retirement from Test cricket, but is keen to try and extend his limited-overs career for his country.

Watson’s manager Elliott Garnaut told the Daily Echo: “At this stage, Shane has no plans to play county cricket next year.

“Off the back of his recent resignation from Test cricket, he is really keen to continue playing for Australia in the shorter formats.

“Shane holds a special spot for Hampshire, however at the moment timing is not right for next year.

“The opportunity to return to Hampshire is something he would certainly consider in the future."

Hampshire chairman Rod Bransgrove said: "Shane and I speak regularly so we are constantly monitoring the situation, but he still has a lot of limited-overs obligations."

Watson has played in ten of Australia's last 11 T20 matches and the start of the next county season clashes with the World T20.

He is also likely to be involved in a one-day tri-series in the West Indies in May and Australia's tour of Sri Lanka in July/August, when they play five ODIs and two T20 internationals.