Kat runs out of lives ...

An Amazon rainforest of newsprint has been devoted to the sacking of Test opener Simon Katich from Cricket Australia’s elite 25-man contracted players list last week – and rightfully so, because the decision stinks.

You can find reasons the 35-year-old’s ouster is a mistake/unfair/possibly discriminatory elsewhere. In short, he is second only to English counterpart Alastair Cook in Test runs over the past three years, meaning he has been Australia’s most productive batsman.

In a forthright and honest press conference, Katich said he was left out because the selectors want to ‘bed down’ the opening combination for the 2013 Ashes series ASAP. The implication? Katich is too old. Katich said he had legal advice saying he’d win an anti-discrimination lawsuit if it came to that.

Not only is it discriminatory, CA’s decision is absurd given it gave new contracts to two other 35-year-old bats, former skipper Ricky Ponting and Mike Hussey, who was one innings away from the end of his career at the start of the season. If Katich isn’t going to be there in 2013, how can it be argued Ponting and Hussey will be?

And why is 2013 the ‘deadline’? Before the quest to regain the Ashes, Australia tours Sri Lanka, South Africa, host New Zealand and the world’s No 1 India. Are these series going to be used as trials for the showdown with the Poms? If we experiment in these upcoming series, Michael Clarke is going to have a rough transition to full-time captaincy.

Although CA CEO James Sutherland said Katich was still in the frame to wear the Baggy Green, the decision means Phillip Hughes will partner Shane Wason at the top of the order come the Sri Lankan tour. Hughes averaged 16.16 when he replaced the injured Katich in the XI three Tests into last summer. And that’s after being dropped on the 2009 Ashes Tour. We’re trading a sure thing (something our team needs) for a hit-and-miss wonderkind.

The other options from the contracted list? Shaun Marsh, who has never looked like getting picked for Test cricket and Usman Khawaja, who batted three in his only Test to date. Please. If Hughes gets worked out (again), we’re back to square one.

Simon Katich

Current age 35 years 297 days

Major teams Australia, Derbyshire, Durham, Hampshire, Kings XI Punjab, New South Wales, Western Australia, Yorkshire

Playing role Batsman

Batting style Left-hand bat

Bowling style Slow left-arm chinaman

Height 1.82 m

Batting and fielding averages

	Mat	Inns	NO	Runs	HS	Ave	BF	SR	100	50	4s	6s	Ct	St
Tests	56	99	6	4188	157	45.03	8483	49.36	10	25	490	9	39	0
ODIs	45	42	5	1324	107*	35.78	1926	68.74	1	9	138	4	13	0
T20Is	3	2	0	69	39	34.50	47	146.80	0	0	8	2	2	0
First-class	231	397	48	18608	306	53.31			51	99			206	0
List A	219	209	22	6923	136*	37.02			7	54			99	0
Twenty20	52	48	9	1239	75	31.76	970	127.73	0	5	125	28	27	0