Vaughan hungry for another big hundred

Michael Vaughan is hoping to build on his overnight 113 tomorrow morning, after becoming the most successful England batsman on an Ashes tour for over 30 years.

Vaughan has stoked up English hopes of avoiding a 5-0 drubbing in the Ashes series, and if the tourists can add significantly to their total of 218 for two at the close of the third day, they could even be pushing for victory as Australia bat last on a deteriorating pitch.

"When there is a full house in the adrenaline flows," Vaughan said. "Maybe in the morning I might be a bit stiff but I'll have a rub down and hopefully score a few more runs.

"I had a decent start. Going in was quite a nervous moment but from the time I got off the mark I felt in pretty good touch.

"When you are in a rhythm you just want to score as many boundaries as you can but you have to tell yourself not to be too clever. At the moment I am playing well and hopefully that can continue tomorrow."

Having scored a duck in the first innings, Vaughan feared completing a pair in the second, but reminded himself that he was out for nought in the first innings at Lord's against India last summer, responding with a century in the second.

"I was on a pair at Lord's and a similar thing happened and I went and got a hundred so I kept on telling myself that I could do the same again," he said.

"Tomorrow's going to be a tough day, but we've had a tough tour and it's quite nice to be on the front foot against Australia for once. For four Test matches they have really dominated us and played some fantastic cricket.

"Maybe the series has gone but there is still a lot of passion out there and for the supporters that we have over here, it would be fantastic if we could do something for them.

"We've been up against a fantastic team and Australia have played some powerful cricket, not only with the ball but also with the bat because they come out and score at some rate of knots. It's very difficult to keep them quiet when you're out in the field.

"But we fought well in Melbourne in the last couple of days of that Test and we've probably taken a little bit of confidence from that into this game.

Australia's vice-captain Adam Gilchrist, who made a magnificent 133 to enable his side to take a minimal first-innings lead, believes England's healthy lead of 217 could provide the hosts with the spur they need.

"It's great for the Ashes that this has happened. England put up a great fight in Melbourne and they've carried that into this match," Gilchrist said. "It is a terrific challenge for us and one that the guys will have a red-hot go at.

"England are in the prime seat, there's no doubt about that but the feeling in the rooms tonight was quite light-hearted and everyone was relaxed. There was a bit of laughter around the team senses a challenge, a real fight.

"We probably haven't been in this position for two or three years but it's mounting up to a really big challenge on that last day and the guys realise it's going to be hard work.

"Of course we think we can win but it is going to take a lot of fight and determination and a lot of mental application."

Gilchrist ridiculed suggestions Australia had become complacent after retaining the Ashes, saying England's fightback simply demonstrated how well the Australians had played in previous matches.

"We wouldn't have hoped to be in this position, of course we would have liked to have a convincing win again but it says a lot of things," he insisted. "We've got a chance to really prove that this is a very, very good cricket team and we can get results even when we're under the pump.

"I think it also highlights that England do have some terrific cricketers and are quite a capable team, and it also probably highlights the way we played at the start of the series in winning the Ashes in 11 days.

"I can remember a lot of focus on how bad England had played but we knew we played well and had to work hard to win that. In moments like this, I can reflect back and think 'yes, we can really be pleased with the way we won the Ashes."