Breetzke to miss 2026 season with Northants

South Africa batter Matthew Breetzke will not be returning to Northamptonshire this summer because of commitments elsewhere.

Breetzke, who first played for the county in 2024 and scored 403 runs in last summer's T20 Blast, had agreed a two-year all formats deal with the county.

He will, however, be playing in the Indian Premier League from March to May and could have other international and franchise calls afterwards.

"It has been decided that having an overseas player with full availability in the T20 Blast will be more beneficial to the team as we look to push towards another Finals Day appearance," said a Northants statement.

"An overseas replacement for the T20 Blast will be announced in due course."

Breetzke, 27, has played two Tests, 12 one-dayers and 13 T20 internationals for South Africa since 2023.

"I've really enjoyed the last two years with the Steelbacks but with the amount of cricket coming up, it wouldn't be fair to return and not be there for all the games," he said.