Simon Katich vents his ire against Cricket Australia

"If you pay peanuts you get monkeys," Katich slams Australia's selection panel (Photo: AFP)

After Australian cricket team’s debacle in the Ashes as well as in the World Cup played in the subcontinent, a major overhaul in the system was highly anticipated. Captain Ricky Ponting expectedly resigned from his post making way for the next generation to take the charge. But the flow of change seemed to have stopped as no further change happened till a few days ago when the Cricket Australia made its new contracted players list public. A noticeable name that was missing from the list was that of opening batsman Simon Katich. Katich is too big a name to be denied of a central contract from the Cricket Australia. Active mostly in the tests these days, Katich has scored 4188 runs in the 56 matches he has played with an impressive average of 45 in an illustrious career spanning over ten years. Being 35, Simon’s career seems to have got over thanks to CA’s decision.

It is believed that his disastrous Ashes performance was the reason he was shown the door. Katich could score only 97 runs in the two matches he played in the Ashes this year with a dismal average of just over 24. Katich, who plays for New SouthWales side in the Australian domestic circuit, spoken out yesterday in a press conference. A ‘fuming’ Katich lashed out at the selectors for the reason cited for ignoring him. He said,

I guess it was particularly disappointing because of the reason that was given. To be told that it’s because the opening partnership needs to be bedded down for 2013 [Ashes] when I know for a fact that Shane Watson and I thoroughly enjoyed opening together and it’s been one of the bright spots of our team in the last two years.

Katich also expressed his displeasure over the “inconsistent” selection policies. He also cited the selection policies as the major reason for Australia’s Ashes debacle. he also batted for a full time selection panel against the current panel headed by Andrew Hilditch with mostly part time members.

If you pay peanuts you get monkeys.

I’ve got no doubt that it (selecting a 17-man squad on the eve of the Ashes) did, and I’m sure there’ll be other players in the team saying the same thing because you’ve got so many guys looking over their shoulder about whether they would play or not. If you were to compare it to how England prepared, they were settled, they played the same team in all their warm-up games and no surprise that they had a very good campaign. There needs to be more consistency.

In my opinion, if you can’t know what your best XI is a week or so before our biggest Test series that we play before the Ashes, that to me reeks of indecision. The fact we had 10 or 11 spinners in the last two or three years … is another indicator of the inconsistency in selections. There’s been rules for some and rules for others.

Katich will keep playing for NSW and hopeful of getting a chance in the national side soon

To be fair, Simon’s performance in recent past baring the two matches in the Ashes series is not bad. In last two years, he played 18 tests (including the 2 tests in the Ashes) and scored at an average of 48 with three centuries to his name. An average of 48 in international cricket is too much to ignore for just two gloomy performances (but in very important games). In fact, Katich is right that opening was perhaps the only area that looked settled for the Team Australia in last two years when its cup of woes was overflowing. It is shocking to see Australian cricket system going after a small fish and saving the bigger culprits, the selectors. Unaccountability of a selection panel is unthinkable in the modern days when all the selection decisions are under public scrutiny and for every selection goof-ups selectors need to answer to the fans. Australian fans are angry. To quote one Rob who commented on the youtube video of Katich’s press conference that “Our selectors are a? joke”. Cricket Australia has to take firm decisions and make its top brass accountable for the team’s performance placate the irate fans of the team which was once known as the world champions.

Watch the full press conference here