FORMER Australian batsman Mark Waugh has given Simon Katich a glowing reference.

Waugh believes that Katich, who is returning to the Rose Bowl to play for Hampshire this summer, should be an automatic selection in Australia's Ashes squad.

At present that is not the case - though it would be a major surprise with the Australia media if Hampshire's Player of the Year in 2003 was not included in the 16-man tour party.

Katich was controversially dropped after scoring his only Test hundred against India at Sydney last year.

And he was axed again after Australia's tour of the Sub-Continent in November, missing the subsequent home Test series against New Zealand.

Recently recalled to Australia's one-day side, Katich remains on the periphery of the Test side.

"I cannot work out the reasons why the selectors dropped Katich," Waugh said. "The decision to replace him with Andrew Symonds in Sri Lanka was one of the worst decisions I'd seen for years."

Katich has scored 822 runs at 41.10 from 13 Tests and 172 runs at just 21.50 from 12 one-day internationals.

In his latest ODI, against New Zealand at Wellington on Saturday, Katich was dismissed for a five-ball duck in Australia's ten-run victory.

Former Hampshire batsman Michael Clarke, Australia's top scorer in their recent VB Series one-day tournament success when he opened the innings, batted at number six - one place higher than Katich - and also registered a duck.

New Zealand, chasing 237 for victory, collapsed from 218-6 to 226 all out with Glenn McGrath taking 4-16 off nine overs.

The second match in the five-game series takes place in Christchurch tomorrow.

The series is followed by a three-Test series next month, in which Shane Warne gets his last competitive action before joining Hampshire for the start of the 2005 English domestic season.