By Justin Langer Australian Test batsman

New Zealand captain Stephen Fleming must have been scratching his head and ruing another missed opportunity after last week's four-day first Test in Christchurch.

One minute we were in all sorts of trouble, the next, we were back in the game

By stumps on day two it would be fair to say his team had us in a position they may only have dreamed about after our past battles in the Test and one-day arenas.

We had our backs to the wall as the reverse-swing of the seamers and the left-arm spin of Daniel Vettori had us searching for answers to the puzzle of how we were going to chase down New Zealand's big first innings total.

Like in Brisbane in October, New Zealand held the upper hand in the Test match and we were definitely under pressure.

Enter Adam Gilchrist.

Back then, our wicket-keeping superstar partnered up with Michael Clarke to steal back the momentum of the game, and set us up for what turned out to be a comprehensive innings triumph.

Such was the ferocity of their partnership, New Zealand must have been rocked by how quickly they went from being on top to losing the game.

The first Test of this series must have had a sense of deja-vu for Fleming and his men as this time Gilly set about destroying their hopes with an incredible partnership with Simon Katich.

One minute we were in all sorts of trouble, the next, we were back in the game and stung into the level of intensity we know will crush the spirits of any opposition.

I hope New Zealand's young players will have the same nightmares I used to have

The scoring rate of players like Adam and Simon are so high that within a session of play, the impetus of the match can swing back in our favour.

Having drawn to within only one run of New Zealand, our bowlers set about using the energy from our batting performance to make life as uncomfortable as it can get in the Test arena.

After their first innings the relatively inexperienced New Zealand batting order succumbed to one of the most sustained performances of pressure bowling that we have delivered since that Brisbane match.

Reinvigorated, Australia ran through the New Zealand second innings

While Stephen Fleming's men improved on their 76 in Brisbane, we were still only set 132 runs to win.

Thankfully this target was achieved with only one wicket down as we rubbed salt into the wounds of New Zealand's broken ambitions.

Having players like Gilchrist, Shane Warne, Glenn McGrath and Ricky Ponting playing like this makes life as tough as it gets.

In a sense many of the New Zealand players must have felt as I did when I first faced the mighty West Indies.

The pressure was suffocating and I wondered how I would ever step up and survive, let alone thrive, in Test cricket.

You wonder where your next run will come from and how you can possibly match it with the best.

Going into the second Test in Wellington, I hope New Zealand's young players will have the same nightmares I used to have when I first entered the scene.

Restless nights and the demons of self doubt are all a part of the journey of an international career.

Hopefully these dark emotions will continue providing us with an advantage as we face the proposition of a bleak match in cold, wet and very windy conditions.