“Absolutely ridiculous!” That was how Simon Katich described the selectors’ decision not to renew his Cricket Australia contract. Sadly, his reaction to the decision was only slightly less ridiculous.
A look at Katich’s numbers will tell you that he’s been a formidable opponent at the highest level. Averaging 45 with the bat and a more than respectable 30 with the ball over his 56 Tests, nobody should question his contribution.
Nor should anybody question his resilience, his intensity or his sheer bloody-mindedness. He will be revered for generations to come. In many ways Simon Katich is what Australian cricket is all about.
In typical Katich style he has gone down swinging. Cricket Australia and the selection panel were targeted and he did not miss. He made some excellent points. The trouble is, apart from Katich’s mother, he is probably the least objective person to make them.
The Australian selectors are less popular than Spanish cucumbers. Many of their decisions have been a hard to follow and the accountability of individual selectors has to be addressed. Getting the blend right is a fine balance for any selection panel. In recent times, this panel has got it dreadfully wrong.
Something needed to be said but not by Katich. If cricket writers or long retired cricketers other than Neil Harvey were to say that the selectors are duds or that Katich deserved better, then it would carry more weight. It should not be left to a newly discarded and visibly angry ex-Test cricketer to tell us the selectors were wrong to leave him out and that they’d made other blunders in the past. This was not a good look.
Surely, if Katich wanted to make a real impact, he should have made his comments when Krejza or Casson or whoever was dumped or when Xavier “am I really here?” Doherty was appointed. Katich would have attracted a lot more sympathy. His career would have been truncated, but he’d have had more sympathy.
Instead Katich thought now was the appropriate time to tell us that if you offer selectors “peanuts” for wages, then you get “monkeys”. While this is probably true, it’s not a dignified way to speak of one’s former employer. After all, those very same “monkeys” awarded him 56 Test caps.
During the press conference, Katich also pointed out several times that “I know how they [the selectors] operate”. Again unecessary. It’s Cricket Australia Simon. It’s not the Stasi.
The comment from Katich that stood out above all others was this: “I know I’ve earned the right to play for Australia through my performance. To have that taken away for a reason I don’t agree with… I just think that’s blatantly wrong.”
Sorry, but nobody has the right to play for Australia. Not the Don, not the Chappells, not Shane Warne and certainly not Simon Katich.
The reality is that Katich will be 36 when Australia plays its next Test. If it is agreed that the selectors should look to youth, then of the three fossils in the side, Katich is the low hanging fruit.
Cricket Australia cannot cite it as a reason, but Katich is rightly suspicious that his age played a role in the decision to leave him out. And it should play a role; otherwise AB would still be batting at four.
Here is what Katich should have said:
“Thanks everybody for coming. I’ll keep it brief. I’m extremely disappointed at the decision by the selectors to leave me out. Anybody that loves playing for his country and with his teammates would feel the same way. The time comes for every man, however.
“I recognise that at 35, my time is now. I’ve enjoyed every minute of playing Test cricket for Australia. It’s been an absolute privilege. I won’t thank all the people that I need to thank, but I will thank my wife. Without her support I wouldn’t be here today. I plan to go back and play for NSW, score lots of runs and help return the Shield to where it belongs. Any questions?”
Simon Katich is a gritty character and deserves respect. He will be fondly remembered for his significant achievements on the cricket field and particularly in the SCG dressing room. His parting tirade at the selectors will be less fondly remembered.
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