Simon Katich - International Selection

International Selection

He was selected to tour Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe with the national team the following season but suffered greatly from illness, including a debilitating bout of chicken pox and subsequent health problems. However, he recovered to contribute further for his state, highlighted in the 2000–01 domestic season where he helped himself to 1,282 first-class runs. He later switched from Western Australia to New South Wales where he currently lives.

Katich made his Test debut on the 2001 Ashes tour of England. He failed to capitalize making only 15 and was not out 0. In only his second match he bowled for the first time in Test cricket, and in the second innings took 6/65 in the 2nd innings against Zimbabwe in Sydney. Following Steve Waugh's retirement in 2004, Katich established himself in the Australian team. His best Test batting performance came against India at Sydney in January 2004, when his 125 and unbeaten 77 saved Australia the Test, series, and a decade long unbeaten record at home. Despite this, he was dropped in favor of Andrew Symonds for Australia's next Test, in Sri Lanka,when Symonds was dropped after the first two Tests, Katich was picked for the third Test and made a patient 86. He regained his place and enjoyed a good Test series in India in October 2004, where he made good scores of 81 and 99. His good form continued with 118 against New Zealand in March 2005. However, he had a poor Ashes tour of England later that year, and after scoring only two runs in the following two Tests (against the ICC World XI and the West Indies), he was dropped from the Test side. Katich was fined during the Ashes for showing dissent to umpire Aleem Dar along with captain Ricky Ponting.

Since the commencement of the 2005–06 season, Katich attempted to cement his place in the Australian one day cricket side, having lost his Test place. He had been sometimes criticised for his slow scoring rate in One Day Internationals, but others believe he was the perfect foil to the aggressive fellow opening batsman Adam Gilchrist. Australia persisted with him throughout the VB Series and in South Africa, as Katich scored runs fairly consistently. However, he struggled in the DLF Cup in September 2006; the next month he lost his place at the top of the order to Shane Watson, who impressed Ponting with some attacking displays against the West Indies and an Indian state team. Katich was not picked in the 15 man squad to play in the World Cup in the West Indies. Katich so far has played a total of 45 One day Internationals. Katich wore the number 19 but swapped for the number 13.

Selected for the 2008 Australian team's tour of India he found himself opening the batting with the injury to Phil Jaques. The repeated failures of his opening partner, Matt Hayden, increased the pressure on Katich. Katich has been criticised for his slow scoring but is considered by some to have helped solidify the Australian batting and to have contributed to the strong position the team had in the first Test (which India recovered to draw) and to have been relatively blameless for the second Test loss in Mohali.

He retained his spot for the home series against New Zealand. In the first Test, at the Gabba, Brisbane, he made 10 in the first innings (in which Australia was all out for 214 on a tough batting deck). However, in the second innings, Katich carried his bat through the innings; the first cricketer to do so at Test level since Mark Taylor in the late 90's. He made 131 not out, 48.88% of Australia's total of 268, in an innings in which the next highest score was 31 (by Mitchell Johnson batting at no. 10). Katich's batting allowed Australia to post a victory target of 327, which it ultimately defended.

Katich was selected for the 2009 tour to England and he played in all five Ashes Tests, scoring 341 runs in 8 innings at an average of 42.62. Katich opened the batting with Phillip Hughes for the first two Tests at Cardiff and Lord's but Hughes was dropped for the Third Test at Edgbaston due to poor form, so Katich was then partnered by Shane Watson for the final three Tests. This proved successful as Watson and Katich scored more runs at the top of the order than the previous Hughes-Katich combination. Katich scored his eighth Test century in the First Test with 122. This was backed up later in the series with a half century. Katich scored these runs at a strike rate of 53.87. He also took six catches in the field and effected two direct hit run outs in the Fifth Test.