Aussie cricket great's sad admission about Mitch Marsh relationship amid ugly Test fallout
Katich has made it clear he thinks Marsh should be dropped.
Former Test opener Simon Katich hopes his relationship with Mitch Marsh can be repaired over time but is unrepentant over his call for the struggling all-rounder to exit the Australian team. Katich questioned Marsh's role in the starting XI before the Boxing Day Test, concerned by the lack of overs he is producing on the back of poor form with the bat.
Marsh's low returns in the fourth Test – he made just 4 and 0 - has him facing the axe for the Sydney New Year's Test. Only a swag of wickets on the back of an Australian win on the final day in Melbourne could possibly save the veteran, with Katich pushing the case for Beau Webster's elevation to the team.
Katich revealed his comments about Marsh's place in the team have not gone down well. Katich started his career in WA before joining NSW and settling in Sydney and has a long- standing relationship with Mitch's father Geoff, a former Test opener and coach, and sons Shaun and Mitch, who both went on to represent Australia.
Simon Katich defends criticism of Mitch Marsh
"I hope not because we go a long way back," Katich told SEN radio on Monday when it was suggested he may have had a fallout with Mitch Marsh. "But I am paid to call it as I see it and that's what I saw up in Brisbane (in the third Test).
"Like a lot of people, we were questioning why is it that he's only bowled two overs. I think we were within our rights to see it that way (but) I know he wasn't happy about that. I get that players get disappointed hearing that, particularly when they're under pressure.
"He's within his rights to feel disappointed hearing that from a former teammate but that's part of the game we're in. We're going to make comments and sometimes the players will enjoy the positive stuff and sometimes they won’t enjoy hearing the negative stuff.
"Hopefully there won’t be any issue for us moving down the track." Asked if he was contacted by Marsh in the wake of his comments, Katich replied: "In terms of directly... I heard he's disappointed so I will leave it at that. I get that."
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Marsh has made just 73 runs during the Border-Gavaskar series, with six single figures scores, and is making little impact with the ball. Former Test coach Justin Langer has called for the 33-year-old to be retained for Sydney, but it's believed selectors are ready to move Marsh on.
