While Haddin acknowledged the New South Welshman desperately needed a score after starting his Test career with three single-figure contributions, he called for patience as Australia ushers in a new era.

Maddinson has been retained in Australia’s squad for the second Commonwealth Bank Test against Pakistan, starting on Boxing Day, but allrounder Hilton Cartwright has also been drafted in as a 13th member, and could replace Maddinson in the Test XI.

Captain Steve Smith flagged on Monday Australia might look to ease the load on pacemen Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Jackson Bird with an allrounder. The fast-bowling trio sent down 113 overs between them in the second innings of the home team’s 39-run triumph in Brisbane.

Cartwright, who averages 44.50 with the bat and 41.93 with the ball from in 16 first-class matches, was added to the squad yesterday.

Maddinson made a duck on debut against South Africa in Adelaide last month – undone by a rampant Kagiso Rabada with the pink ball under lights – before Australia powered to a seven-wicket victory.

The 24-year-old, who has an average of 36.64 at first-class level, followed up with scores one and four at the Gabba.

Steve Smith reacts moments after the drama

Maddinson was unfortunate in the second innings, arriving at the crease with Australia in search of quick runs before a declaration.

The aggressive left-hander has logged 235 runs at 39.16, including one century, from three Sheffield Shield matches this summer.

Quick Single: Cartwright added for Boxing Day

“He’s been a bit unlucky, to be honest,” Haddin said on Sky Sports Radio.

“He’s got a couple of good balls, he’s (played his first two games) against two pink balls which is a bit different, so I’m glad they’ve given him Melbourne to give him the opportunity to get some runs and I hope they give him the rest of the series.

“I know (interim chairman of selectors) Trevor Hohns said when he picked this squad that you’re going to have to be patient, and Nic Maddinson is one of those players I think.

“But you can’t hide behind the fact he needs a big score.”

Maddinson’s rocky road in Test career continues

Maddinson was one of five changes in a revamped line-up for the Adelaide Test against South Africa, with Matthew Renshaw and Peter Handscomb also making their debuts.

Renshaw scored 71 in the first innings in Brisbane, while Handscomb hammered his maiden Test century to back up the 54 he made in Adelaide.

“The bowlers got through a high workload in Brisbane and although everyone has pulled up okay, on reflection we wanted to give ourselves the option of including an allrounder in Melbourne to ease that workload somewhat,” Hohns said.

Cartwright reflects on training with Aussie squad

“To do that we wanted a batting allrounder, someone to bowl seam-up and capable of batting in the top six as well, and after considering several names we came to the conclusion that Hilton fits that bill.

“We have seen plenty of him, he has performed well this season and we believe that if called upon he will do an excellent job.”

Australia’s Boxing Day Test squad: David Warner, Matt Renshaw, Usman Khawaja, Steve Smith (c), Peter Handscomb, Nic Maddinson, Matthew Wade, Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood, Nathan Lyon, Jackson Bird, Chadd Sayers, Hilton Cartwright

In an extraordinary second day’s play of the second Test at Galle where 21 wickets fell for 314 runs, Australia chasing an imposing target of 413 for victory were struggling at 25 for three wickets still requiring a further 388 runs with seven wickets and three days of the Test remaining.

The most wickets to fall in a day’s play in a Test in Sri Lanka is 22 against England at the SSC in 2001.

The way the Test has panned out so far Australia has a tough task ahead of them to try and save the match and with it the series. They already trail 0-1 after losing the first Test to Sri Lanka at Pallekele by 106 runs and another loss would mean they not only lose the series but their no. 1 Test ranking as well.

The Galle pitch was something that was hard to explain. It was not that it was unplayable but it tested the capabilities of the batsmen against both pace and spin. Otherwise how can one justify spinners Rangana Herath, Dilruwan Perera and Lakshan Sandakan taking 12 wickets and Australian pace bowler Mitchell Starc, a match bag of 11 for 94 which is the second best figures by a visiting fast bowler in Sri Lanka after Pakistani Mohammad Asif’s 11/71 at Asgiriya Kandy in 2006. It was also the first time in his 27-Test career he had returned match figures of ten or more wickets.

Australia’s second innings batting followed almost the same pattern as their first with Herath dismissing Joe Burns in the first over for two and Dilruwan Perera following up with the wickets of nightwatchman Nathan Lyon and Usman Khawaja for zeros.

David Warner was unbeaten on 22 with Steve Smith on one not out.

Australia’s captain and vice-captain have a gargantuan task ahead of them to try and win the match and keep the series alive.

Herath became only the second Sri Lankan bowler to perform the hat-trick in Test cricket when he along with fellow spinner Dilruwan Perera bowled Australia out for 106 – their lowest total against Sri Lanka.

The first hour’s play was crucial to both sides as Australia resumed at 54-2 in reply to Sri Lanka’s first innings of 281 on a difficult pitch for batsmen.

Australia lost the plot when within that crucial hour they lost six wickets for 35 runs off 16.3 overs.

Within a matter of 95 minutes they were all back in the pavilion as Herath and Perera played havoc with their batting. It was not so much the spin that the Aussies were troubled by, but the ball skidding off the surface which they were not accustomed to. It was something that the Australians may not have bargained for during their serious preparations ahead of the series.

As skipper Steve Smith admitted during the pre-Test conference the conditions in Sri Lanka (or rather subcontinent) were alien to his team brought up on pace oriented pitches.

From the manner in which Smith’s men tried to play the two spinners they gave the impression that they had not yet come to terms of how to play spin in the subcontinent. Each batsman may have worked out his own plan of countering the spin but none had mastered it as the events of yesterday unfolded.

The Australian wickets tumbled like nine pins as Perera began the slide by getting Usman Khawaja’s wicket for 11 in the second over of the day and Herath sent back Smith for five with the score stagnant on 59.

Mitch Marsh and Adam Voges carried to score to 80 at which total Herath performed his hat-trick in his seventh over – by first having Voges caught by Karunaratne at extra cover for eight and following it up with the wickets of Peter Nevill and Mitchell Starc – both lbw. Herath was made to wait for a while before celebrating the unique feat when the umpire ruled Starc not out and Sri Lanka subsequently challenged the decision which eventually was given in their favour.

The only other Sri Lankan bowler to perform the hat-trick was fast bowler Nuwan Zoysa against Zimbabwe at Harare in 1999 when he dismissed Trevor Gripper, Murray Goodwin and Neil Johnson with his first three deliveries in the Test, a rare feat yet to be equalled.

David Warner’s 42 remained as Australia’s top score as they put up an abject batting performance against spin on a wicket that was not doing a lot. With a handy first innings lead of 175, Sri Lanka stretched it to beyond 400 when they were dismissed for 237 in their second innings. When Mathews was dismissed for 47 Sri Lanka were 121-6 but Dilruwan Perera who had failed upto yesterday to fulfill his potential as a late order batsman except on one previous occasion came good to score a valuable 64 off 89 balls and raise the total by 112 runs in partnerships with Dhananjaya de Silva (34) and Herath (26).

Sri Lanka were again let down by their opening pair who were both back in the pavilion by the third over. Kaushal Silva fell for two to Josh Hazlewood and Karunaratne (7) was out to Starc for the fourth time in as many innings in the series.

Starc also removed first Test hero Kusal Mendis cheaply for seven and Dinesh Chandimal for 13

The upcoming three-Test series against Sri Lanka is no different. For already Mitchell Starc, who will spearhead the Australian bowling line-up in the three-Test series beginning at Pallekele on Tuesday has spoken of targeting Angelo Mathews, the Sri Lanka captain.

In a team that is under transition and short of experience Mathews is the stand-out batsman for Sri Lanka in the Test series with 4140 runs at an average of 48.70 and seven centuries. He is the best by way of figures or otherwise for the nearest batsman to him in the team is his deputy Dinesh Chandimal with 2007 (avg. 44.50) and six Test hundreds.

So it’s no surprise that getting Mathews’ wicket would be a crucial factor in Australia’s campaign to win the Test series. Former West Indies fast bowler Michael Holding when asked whom the all-conquering West Indies side led by Clive Lloyd would target during a series he came out with the answer that it was the opposing captain.

Holding explained that if the captain’s wicket is taken cheaply he will be worried more about his batting form and place in the team rather than worry about the opposition for which he will have less time.

Australian teams seem to have adhered to this belief that a sure way to unsettle a rival is to heap pressure on their captain. So Starc targeting Mathews is nothing new.

“It would be (a big wicket) and look, he’s under pressure,” Starc told Cricket Australia. “He’d be under pressure after the English tour and as a captain he’ll have to go through that pressure and perform as well. And that’s something that Steve (Smith, Australia’s Test captain) for us does really well.

“He’s been fantastic as a captain and performed from the front as well, so no doubt we’ll put a lot of pressure on Angelo to firstly perform and for him he’s got to lead as captain.

“He’ll be a big wicket for us along with (vice-captain Dinesh) Chandimal, and, for their bowlers, (veteran left-arm spinner Rangana) Herath is the most experienced and one that we’ll try and counter.”

In the bowling line-up Sri Lanka will bank heavily on Herath’s experience of playing in 70 Tests and capturing over 300 wickets in the absence of regular bowlers Dhammika Prasad and Dushmantha Chameera who are both injured.

In the batting Australia is top heavy with vice-captain David Warner and captain Steve Smith scoring a total of 30 Test hundreds between them and the rest Adam Voges, Shaun Marsh and Usman Khawaja accounting for a dozen centuries.

What Sri Lanka can come up with is a total of 18 Test centuries from their four top batsmen Mathews, Chandimal and openers Dimuth Karunaratne and Kaushal Silva. Although Australia doesn’t have a bowler of Herath’s class in their line-up but nevertheless have some outstanding match winners in off-spinner Nathan Lyon who is the leading wicket-taker in the side with 195 wickets and new ball bowlers Mitchell Starc with 91 and Jos Hazelwood with 70.

A lot depends on how the Lankan openers tackle the Australian new ball attack of Starc, Hazlewood and Jackson Bird and see them off so that the middle order can play their natural game. In England, the Sri Lankan top order was swept away by Anderson, Broad and Finn in the first three innings of the series before they managed to resurrect themselves and come up with challenging totals.

Karunaratne and Silva put on a century opening stand in the third and final Test at Lord’s and Sri Lanka will be hoping they will be able to extend that run to the Australian series as well.

After an extended season of white-ball cricket, it is back to the rigours of Tests for Australia, who open their season in the unforgiving climes of the sub-continent with a three-match series against Sri Lanka. Australia arrived in the island nation a full two weeks ahead of the first Test in Pallekele with an eye on getting acclimatised to the conditions at the earliest. One of the key challenges for the team, according to in-form batsman Usman Khawaja, is the need to transition quickly to playing with the red ball.

“We haven’t played red-ball cricket for a while,” Khawaja said on Saturday (July 16). “It is weird seeing the red ball coming down the first time when it did. But change is nice. I really enjoyed having that period of white-ball cricket. Now, I’m enjoying coming back to the Test mould. We were out on the field whole day yesterday, so you figure how tough being on the field is and you’ve to do it five days of it. Test match is hard stuff, so looking forward to it.”

Since their two Tests against New Zealand at the turn of the year, Australia played a limited-overs series in South Africa, the World T20 in India and an One-Day International tri-series in the Caribbean. Khawaja opined that the success on the tour will depend on how the Australian players adapt, both mentally and physically.

“[The transition] will involve a bit of both. It’s about making sure you’re doing everything right mentally and physically. Test match is always the toughest form of the game, more so in conditions like these for five days. You know if it gets that far, it is going to be tough.

“Everyone is training really hard so far and doing what they have to do. It’s always hard in little intra-squad match like this to replicate the full match conditions but it was nice for everyone to get out in the middle and get some time on a ground we’ll be playing in couple of days time,” he added.

While Australia haven’t enjoyed the greatest of returns in spinning conditions – they lost in India in 2013-14 and then faced another series loss to Pakistan in UAE in 2014 – Khawaja believes that the players are now more in-tune with the demands of playing in such conditions, thanks to their limited-overs outings in largely similar environments.

“Yes, the weather’s a big challenge. It’s very hot and humid. That’s a challenge on its own. The conditions are different but you get similar (conditions) in the Windies and India. It’s not too foreign. But obviously very different from what we get back home. One of those places, if you get in and score a few runs you’ll feel really comfortable. At the some time, if the wicket deteriorates, it can get tough to score on.”

Only four members – Usman Khawaja, Nathan Lyon, Shaun Marsh and Peter Siddle – from the 14-member squad that played in Australia’s victorious Test series campaign against New Zealand earlier this year, have experienced Test cricket in the island nation. James Pattinson was in the squad that toured Sri Lanka in 2011 but he didn’t get a game.

“I was over there when Shaun Marsh made his debut hundred (in September 2011),” Warner told cricket.com.au on Wednesday (May 4). “I’ve seen first-hand how the wickets are there. I know Pallekele is a nice batting wicket with a bit of late turn in the innings. Galle is traditionally a slow turner and in Colombo it’s a very nice batting track. For us, as a batting group, it’s about batting long periods and building partnerships and putting on good totals to make sure that our bowlers are in play come the second innings, whether it’s through reverse (swing) or spin.” Two of Australia’s recent tours to the sub-continent ended in disaster as they lost 4-0 to India in 2013 and then 2-0 to Pakistan in the United Arab Emirates in 2014. Despite having a career strike rate of 76.92 in the format, Warner saw it come down to 50 in India three years ago. It was slightly better in the UAE, where he was scoring at a rate just under 60.

Warner reasoned that the batsmen can tend to get bogged down in sub-continental conditions and that attacking the spinners could end up working in the batting side’s favour. “Sometimes we can get caught being too defensive and forget about attacking a little bit,” he said. “Sometimes that can work in your favour if you attack a little bit more the bowler might have to take out a short leg or an extra slip and put it somewhere else. “We’ve got to be prepared to bat time and battle the demons of whether the ball can actually turn as much as you think. For us it’s our bat in front our pads and actually using our feet a bit more and looking to score. We’re going to have to come up with a game plan to suit those conditions and you’ve got to stick to your game plan.” Whether his teammates follow suit or not, Warner is sure about taking the aggressive route in Sri Lanka. “At the end of the day, for me, my best way of approaching the game is to look to score runs. “If I’m looking to score then I’m in the right frame of mind. That’s always going to be my positive energy and intent and that’s always to look to score first and defend second.”

After Ross Taylor hit a career-best 290, the highest score ever by a visiting batsman in Australia, to steer New Zealand to a first innings lead, Steve Smith and Adam Voges posted twin centuries to help the home side recover after a shaky start.

At the close, Australia were 258 for two in their second innings, with Smith on 131 and Voges on 101, for an overall lead of 193.

It was Smith’s 12th century and fifth this year, but his first in a second innings, while for 36-year-old Voges it was just his second hundred and came in his first Test on his home ground.

Voges reached his century from the penultimate over of the day.

Smith was dropped on 96 when wicketkeeper BJ Watling put down a tough chance down leg-side off paceman Matt Henry.

Although the match appeared set to be a draw on a lifeless wicket which has offered little assistance to the bowlers over the first four days, Australia will hope to declare on the final day and dismiss the Kiwis cheaply.

Voges wasn’t giving much away about the final day’s plan, noting the flat nature of the wicket.

“I don’t think we will do them any favours,” he said.

“Ultimately that will be Steve’s decision but the good thing is we have some options.”

Taylor said he expected Australians to set the Kiwis a target.

“The odd ball’s doing a little bit to put the batter a little bit on edge,” he said.

“But knowing Australia, I’m sure they’ll come out tomorrow and try to score some quick runs and put us under pressure.

“I’m sure whatever they give us, we’ll definitely have a go, and we’ll wait and see what happens. ”

Australia already lead the three-Test series 1-0 after beating New Zealand by 208 runs at the Gabba.

In reply to Australia’s imposing 559 for nine declared after winning the toss, the Kiwis were dismissed for 624 just before lunch, their highest total against their trans-Tasman rivals on the back of Taylor’s mammoth knock and 166 from Kane Williamson.

That made it a record combined first innings total for a Test at the WACA Ground.

Kiwi hopes were then raised when Australian openers Joe Burns (0) and David Warner (24) fell early, leaving the home side precariously placed at 46 for two, with the injured Usman Khawaja (hamstring) not taking his place at number three.

The Kiwis were still 19 runs ahead at that stage, but Smith and Voges then added 212 runs for the third wicket.

Taylor was the last man to fall in the New Zealand innings as he attempted to join captain Brendon McCullum (302 v India) as only the second Kiwi to reach a triple century in Test cricket.

However, on 290 the right-hander holed out to substitute fielder Jonathan Wells off spinner Nathan Lyon to end a 37-run 10th-wicket stand with Trent Boult (23 not out).

Former skipper Taylor passed several milestones in his innings, which was his first century since November last year, and ended a form slump that even he admitted was starting to worry him.

He broke through 5,000 Test runs and posted the highest-ever score by a visiting player in a Test in Australia, as well as becoming the first Kiwi to pass 200 against Australia.

His innings, beating the 287 of England’s Reg ‘Tip’ Foster at the Sydney Cricket Ground in 1903, was the third-highest ever for New Zealand at Test level.

Taylor, who put on 265 for the third wicket with Williamson, faced 374 balls and hit 43 boundaries in 567 minutes at the crease. Number 10 Southee gave the Kiwis a lead which seemed impossible on the opening day when he turned Mitchell Starc off his pads for four as they became the first visiting side to reach 600 in Australia since 2011. Starc was the best of the Australian bowlers and finished with four for 119.

AFP

After winning the toss and electing to bat, Warner’s third century in as many innings saw the home side reach a commanding 416 for two at stumps against the demoralised Kiwis in what is shaping up to be a disappointingly lopsided three-Test Trans-Tasman series.

At stumps Warner was unbeaten on 244, having notched the highest score by an Australian in a single day on home soil, with captain Steve Smith on five.

The Australian total was the highest on the first day of a Test at the venue.

Usman Khawaja posted his second century of the series before falling just before stumps for 121 to end a 302-run stand with Warner.

That set a new second-wicket partnership mark for Australia, surpassing Arthur Morris and Don Bradman’s 301-run effort at Headingley in 1948.

Already down 1-0 in the three-Test series after being thumped by 208 runs at The Gabba, the Kiwi bowlers gained little assistance from the pitch and were again on the wrong end of the decision review system.

Warner cashed in to notch his 15th Test century in 45 matches and went on to post his highest score.

After narrowly surviving a decision review on 78, he reached triple figures with his 12th boundary, having faced 118 balls.

It was also his fourth successive century against New Zealand, making him just the fifth batsman in history to score four hundreds in a row against the same opponent. The others in the select group are South Africa’s Alan Melville and Hashim Amla, West Indian Everton Weekes and Pakistan’s Shoaib Mohammad.

Kiwi heartbreak

Warner went on to post his maiden Test double century late in the day, having faced 236 balls and hit 17 fours and two sixes in reaching the milestone.

Left-handed Warner has scored 676 runs against the Kiwis at a formidable average of 169, and has 638 runs at 127.60 at the WACA in four Tests.

His total is the second biggest individual score at the ground behind Matthew Hayden’s 380 against Zimbabwe in 2003 and Warner also passed 4,000 Test runs during his innings.Warner and fellow opener Joe Burns put on 101 for the first wicket — their third century opening stand in as many innings together.

The feat emulates the great Australian partnership of Hayden and Justin Langer, who passed centuries in their first three outings together in 2001 and went on to become the fourth-highest scoring partnership in Test history.

It also takes Australia to a Test cricket world record of five successive century opening partnerships, including Warner and Chris Rogers’s last two innings together in this year’s Ashes.

Burns made 40 before chopping a ball on from the bowling of recalled seamer Matt Henry (1-51).

Warner and Khawaja then broke Kiwi hearts as the visitors toiled without reward in the searing heat on a day where even skipper Brendon McCullum had a rare bowl.

The Kiwis wasted an early decision review on a leg-before-wicket (lbw) appeal when a replay showed a clear inside edge from Burns from the bowling of Tim Southee.

Their second review was much more marginal, with Warner given not out lbw and the replay showing fractionally less than half the ball was hitting the bails, leaving the decision as umpire’s call and the visitors without any more reviews.

Khawaja was then given not out caught behind from the bowling of spinner Mark Craig for 38, with replays showing he clearly edged it to add to Kiwi frustration.

Without addition to his score, Khawaja survived another close appeal for lbw by the unlucky Southee. Khawaja was also dropped on the boundary on 62 just before tea, with the ball deflecting for six to compound Kiwi misery. AFP

After winning the toss and electing to bat, Warner’s third century in as many innings saw the home side reach a commanding 416 for two at stumps against the demoralised Kiwis in what is shaping up to be a disappointingly lopsided three-Test Trans-Tasman series.

At stumps Warner was unbeaten on 244, having notched the highest score by an Australian in a single day on home soil, with captain Steve Smith on five.

The Australian total was the highest on the first day of a Test at the venue.

Usman Khawaja posted his second century of the series before falling just before stumps for 121 to end a 302-run stand with Warner.

That set a new second-wicket partnership mark for Australia, surpassing Arthur Morris and Don Bradman’s 301-run effort at Headingley in 1948.

Already down 1-0 in the three-Test series after being thumped by 208 runs at The Gabba, the Kiwi bowlers gained little assistance from the pitch and were again on the wrong end of the decision review system.

Warner cashed in to notch his 15th Test century in 45 matches and went on to post his highest score.

After narrowly surviving a decision review on 78, he reached triple figures with his 12th boundary, having faced 118 balls.

It was also his fourth successive century against New Zealand, making him just the fifth batsman in history to score four hundreds in a row against the same opponent. The others in the select group are South Africa’s Alan Melville and Hashim Amla, West Indian Everton Weekes and Pakistan’s Shoaib Mohammad.

Kiwi heartbreak

Warner went on to post his maiden Test double century late in the day, having faced 236 balls and hit 17 fours and two sixes in reaching the milestone.

Left-handed Warner has scored 676 runs against the Kiwis at a formidable average of 169, and has 638 runs at 127.60 at the WACA in four Tests.

His total is the second biggest individual score at the ground behind Matthew Hayden’s 380 against Zimbabwe in 2003 and Warner also passed 4,000 Test runs during his innings.Warner and fellow opener Joe Burns put on 101 for the first wicket — their third century opening stand in as many innings together.

The feat emulates the great Australian partnership of Hayden and Justin Langer, who passed centuries in their first three outings together in 2001 and went on to become the fourth-highest scoring partnership in Test history.

It also takes Australia to a Test cricket world record of five successive century opening partnerships, including Warner and Chris Rogers’s last two innings together in this year’s Ashes.

Burns made 40 before chopping a ball on from the bowling of recalled seamer Matt Henry (1-51).

Warner and Khawaja then broke Kiwi hearts as the visitors toiled without reward in the searing heat on a day where even skipper Brendon McCullum had a rare bowl.

The Kiwis wasted an early decision review on a leg-before-wicket (lbw) appeal when a replay showed a clear inside edge from Burns from the bowling of Tim Southee.

Their second review was much more marginal, with Warner given not out lbw and the replay showing fractionally less than half the ball was hitting the bails, leaving the decision as umpire’s call and the visitors without any more reviews.

Khawaja was then given not out caught behind from the bowling of spinner Mark Craig for 38, with replays showing he clearly edged it to add to Kiwi frustration.

Without addition to his score, Khawaja survived another close appeal for lbw by the unlucky Southee. Khawaja was also dropped on the boundary on 62 just before tea, with the ball deflecting for six to compound Kiwi misery. AFP