Rejuvenated Rogers inspired by Katich

Chris Rogers will take his lead from Simon Katich this summer as he aims to force his way back into contention for the Test team less than a year after making his debut. Rogers has not given up hope of adding to his one Test cap despite losing his Cricket Australia contract for 2008-09.

During the off-season Rogers, 31, switched from Western Australia to Victoria after he became increasingly frustrated by what he felt was a lack of support from the Warriors, who regularly overlooked him for their one-day side. He has spent the winter with Derbyshire and has been one of the leading scorers in the County Championship, and he hopes it will be the spark he needs to restart his international career.

"Right now, you look at [Phil] Jaques, [Matthew] Hayden and Katich and there doesn't seem to be much room," Rogers told the Sydney Morning Herald. "But then you look at someone like Katich or David Hussey, and you see that with hard work and consistency, you can make it back. Katto is a real inspiration. He's set a precedent I now need to follow."

An injury to Hayden opened the door for Rogers to play the Perth Test against India last season. He scored 4 and 15 but was unhappy with where his cricket was heading at the time, and a week later he found himself playing grade cricket because Western Australia did not want him in their limited-overs side.

"I was very upset. I had just gone from playing in front of thousands of people in a big Test to Joondalup in a week," he said. "I found it emotionally hard to deal with. I turned up right as the first ball was being bowled, which I'm not very proud of.

"I ended up coming into bat at No. 7, was in just before lunch, and ended up getting 150-odd. I remember that morning I had been speaking to my dad and saying, 'This isn't what I want. I don't know if I can deal with this'."

He finished the domestic season with a solid but not outstanding collection of runs, whereas Katich's record-breaking summer earned him the backup batting spot for the West Indies tour. Further Hayden injuries meant Katich opened in the Caribbean and he scored two centuries to make Rogers' task even more difficult.

Katich was named in the squad for the upcoming tour of India and with Shane Watson, David Hussey and Brad Hodge all remaining on the fringes of the national side, Rogers will face a tough road back. However, he hopes the move to Victoria will reinvigorate him and help him return to the form that saw him top the Pura Cup run tally in 2006-07.

"Things are clearer now," Rogers said. "I need to score runs and be consistent. I'm more comfortable with myself again."