Viduka has scored six international goals in 37 appearances

The 30-year-old striker had considered ending his Australia career to focus on playing club football at Middlesbrough.

But he now hopes to rejoin the team after his wife gives birth in October.

"It's a big commitment playing for Australia because there's such a lot of travelling and it means being away from the family," he told Boro's website.

A lot of us were thinking when we got to those sorts of highs, is it going to get any better than this? Mark Viduka on the World Cup

Viduka, who has scored six international goals in 32 appearances, was a key figure for the Socceroos as they reached the last 16 of the World Cup in Germany.

But he considered quitting and focusing on Boro after Australia's heartbreaking loss to eventual champions Italy.

"A lot of us were thinking when we got to those sorts of highs, is it going to get any better than this?," he added.

Viduka said he had made a deal with Australia's caretaker coach Graham Arnold that he would miss two Asian Cup qualifiers against Kuwait to remain with his wife but hoped to rejoin the team next year.