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ADELAIDE - The return of Matthew Hayden has given Australia a huge confidence boost ahead of the fourth and final test against India starting on Thursday.
The Queensland opener scored centuries in each of the first two tests, both won by Australia, but a hamstring injury forced him
out of last week's third match, surprisingly won by India.
Hayden has declared himself available for the final match and his teammates believe his return will swing the balance back in Australia's favour.
"Obviously Matt coming back into the side will make a big difference to our team," Hayden's opening partner Phil Jaques told a news conference on Tuesday.
"He has a wealth of knowledge, he's got lots of experience and is a great guy to have in the team."
Hayden had not missed a test for Australia since 2000 and his impact on the team's success was all the more noticeable by his absence at Perth.
His replacement, Chris Rogers, made only 4 and 15 on his debut, while Jaques, who has only played seven tests, also failed with scores of 8 and 16.
Jaques said he could not blame his failure on the absence of Hayden but admitted the presence of his more experienced partner did make it easier for all the top-order batsmen.
"My mindset didn't change much not having Matt there but obviously having him there will give the whole side a boost."
"Every test we play we get a better understanding of running between the wickets and how each other plays. It's definitely good to have a regular guy there."
The Australian batting failed miserably in the first innings in Perth, dismissed for just 212, as the top-order struggled to cope with the swing generated by India's seamers.
Jaques said he expected the Indians would not get as much movement at the Adelaide Oval while the Australian batsmen would be ready for them this time.
"They bowled with some very good discipline and they batted pretty well, but I think if we're honest we didn't play the way that we can play, we all know that, particularly in the batting department," Jaques said.
"We'll be looking at our top order to fire and I'm sure we'll have a better effort this time."
Although Australia have already retained the Border-Gavaskar trophy, Jaques said they would not be satisfied unless they won the series. They currently lead 2-1.
"We'll obviously be looking at winning this test match and really ramming home that series win," he said.
"To draw the series will be really disappointing, we really want to win as many games of cricket as possible.
"We'll approach it as we always approach it which is fiercely competitive and play the game the right way but play the game hard.
"We'll be trying to be as aggressive as possible without crossing that line."
- REUTERS