By Jonathan Agnew BBC cricket correspondent, Melbourne

Steve Waugh insisted that he didn't want the uncertainty that surrounds his future to dominate this Test match.

But he is now perfectly - and intriguingly - poised to dispel any doubts and to ram his point home to the selectors.

He ended a day which was utterly dominated by Australia on 62 not out.

Strange as it may seem, this was one of England's better efforts with the ball

And the manner in which he set about his task was absolutely typical of the man's determination and courage.

Applauded by 70,000 fans every step of the way from the dressing room to the middle, he quickly hit four boundaries, and raced to his fifty from only 49 balls.

Then, sensing that a "delightful cameo" probably would not settle the issue, he settled down to make the most of his opportunity on day two.

Waugh knows only a big innings will secure his spot

It was hard to believe that there had been a whiff of optimism in the England camp before the match began.

This followed their two emphatic one-day wins over Sri Lanka, which had done much to prove England's point that Australia are a long way ahead of the rest.

However, this upbeat mood was swept away after an encouraging morning by some ruthless and, at times, outrageous hitting by Justin Langer and Matthew Hayden.

It is not often you see opening batsmen striking fast bowlers straight for six only 10 minutes before lunch on the opening day of a Test, but Hayden was in belligerent mood.

After his partner had needlessly perished to another attempted big hit, Langer, reached his hundred with a smeared six off the luckless Dawson, high over long on.

Cheekily, Langer signalled the six long before the ball disappeared into the ecstatic crowd.

But he, too, became relatively becalmed as Australia realised that they had to consolidate their position.

Strange as it may seem, this was one of England's better efforts with the ball, with both Steve Harmison and Andy Caddick making batting hard work in the morning.

While there were not any clear chances to report, there were one or two missed opportunities as Hayden hooked to deep square leg.

Australia targetted young off-spinner Dawson

The trouble was that Australia deliberately set out to expose England's flawed selection of only four bowlers by targeting Dawson, the young off-spinner.

And it was not long before Hussain was scouring the field, looking for alternatives.

The withdrawal of Alec Stewart, with a badly bruised hand, had caused the reshuffle which included an unexpected opportunity for James Foster behind the stumps.

The youngster kept tidily, and the fact that Stewart is unlikely to recover in time for the final Test in Sydney might very well spell the end of his illustrious career.

That is, if England's selectors do the right thing at the start of next summer when the Ashes and the World Cup are behind us, and look to the future.