Hayden returns to scene of triumph

Matthew Hayden fends off a Brett Lee thunderbolt © Getty Images

A little over a year ago, Matthew Hayden set a then world-record score of 380 at Perth. On that occasion the opposition were Zimbabwe, a side with a popgun attack. When Hayden returns to the WACA for the first since then, for Thursday's first Test, he will face a far more threatening attack.

As if he needed reminding, in the Perth nets, he was given an indication of what to expect when struck by a short ball from team-mate Brett Lee, Australia's likely 12th man in the match. Hayden, who suffered no ill effects, said: "These nets are pretty quick as it is and I copped one on the finger but I'll be right."

It had been Hayden's hamstring which had left him a doubtful starter, but he confirmed that it was now fine and that he would be fit to play. And so his thoughts turned to the Pakistan attack.

"This one's obviously a physical challenge ... something that you get up against and it's basically do or die," he said. "It's as simple as that really. That physical element to playing fast bowling is definitely there."

He also admitted that he was still regularly reminded of his 380. "I've heard some fantastic stories actually of [people's] memories, from childbirth to just the experiences they had to remind them of that day," he grinned. "It's an exciting thing, even old Ernie Dingo was on the TV yesterday, touring around the ground, and saying 'This is where Matt Hayden made 380', so it's certainly a very happy memory. When I'm out in my own boat fishing one day I'll certainly get time to reflect on those experiences and really enjoy them."

Hayden was not at his best in the two-match series against New Zealand, and he has now gone 13 innings without notching three figures. But it is hardly a crisis, nor is the fact that Ricky Ponting has gone 16 innings - almost a year - since his last century.

And while the WACA was expected to be hard and fast, Glenn McGrath reiterated that it wasn't just about steaming in and bowling as quickly as possible. In nine Tests on the ground, McGrath has never taken a five-for. "It's a very fine line," he shrugged. "You've got to hit that right length otherwise you can go for plenty of runs. We've got good game plans. The last thing we'll want to do is go and try to blast them out and have it not work."