Hayden returns to his land of rebirth

It was a career-reviving tour of India in 2001 for Hayden, who had come as a virtual unknown but returned as a star in a strong batting line-up.

Matthew Hayden is back where he loves to be. If it were possible to carry cricket pitches in a kit-bag, the Australian opener would like to take Indian tracks to all parts of the world.

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Hayden fell in love with Indian pitches at first sight, scoring as he pleased on his maiden trip to the country in 2001 with Steve Waugh's team. In three Tests, he gathered 549 runs with two centuries, averaging 109.80.

It was a career-reviving tour for Hayden, who had come as a virtual unknown but returned as a star in a strong batting line-up.

The left-hander had been struggling to cement his place in the team since making his Test debut against South Africa at Johannesburg in 1994. He had made just one century in 13 Tests before finding his feet in India.

Hayden was a revelation in the opening Test at Mumbai, smashing an aggressive 119 under pressure to upstage even big names including Waugh twins, Steve and Mark.