SIMON KATICH was this week confirmed as Hampshire's second overseas player for next season.

The 27-year-old Australian left hander has signed a one year contract with the county and should be available for the entire summer unless called up by his country. His only Test was against England at Headingley in 2001. He has a good knowledge of English conditions, having played for Durham throughout the 2000 season when he scored more than 1,000 first class runs at an average of 48.31. He also played one match for Yorkshire at the end of last season and has played once in one-day international cricket for Australia. A product of the Australian Academy, he's now vice captain of New South Wales after six seasons with Western Australia. Hampshire's new Cricket Manager, Paul Terry, has seen a lot of Katich during his time with WA and said: "Simon was always my preferred option. He's a fine player and a good bloke with a great temperament. "He can also bowl some useful left arm spin and will fit in well with our squad." Katich is relishing the prospect. "I'm thrilled to be joining Hampshire and I know I'll enjoy it," he said. "All the reports I've had about them are extremely favourable about where they're heading. I learned a lot from my time in England and I'm looking forward to the new challenge." Katich will link up at the Rose Bowl with his fellow countryman Hampshire's incoming skipper Shane Warne. The news of Warne's latest shoulder injury sent ripples of anxiety through the Hampshire camp. It's not clear how long he'll take to recover, but Director of Cricket, Tim Tremlett, commented: "From what we hear, the tendon is not damaged although the cartilage and ligaments are. "We hope he'll be OK for the World Cup, but it does seem certain he'll be fit by the time he's due to join us in late May." Tremlett confirmed that Neil Johnson is among the possibles to replace Warne for the opening weeks of the season and for a further spell at the end of July.