Holland coach Marco van Basten will be without the services of Rafael van der Vaart for Sunday's friendly international against Australia after the midfielder suffered a recurrence of his ankle injury during training.

The 23-year-old Hamburg star endured ankle surgery in April but van Basten insists he is confident the playmaker will be fit to face Serbia & Montenegro in Holland's World Cup opener on June 11.

"Rafael is doing fine right now but it wouldn't be wise to use him on Sunday," van Basten said.

"He is a player with specific qualities and will have to earn his spot in the team during the training sessions."

Van Basten is expected to name his first-choice line-up against Australia after fielding a reserve team in Thursday's 2-1 victory against Mexico.

Van der Vaart has been a regular in the Oranje squad since making his debut in a 4-0 win against Andorra in October 2001. He helped Ajax win the Eredivisie title twice before joining Hamburg in the summer of 2005, where his goalscoring was a major factor in the club's Bundesliga title challenge this term.