Steve Smith's worrying slump continues as Aussie batters miss a trick in first Test

Steve Smith has missed another opportunity to return to his mercurial best after failing to capitalise on a promising start with the bat in Australia's first cricket Test against Pakistan. Aussie teammate David Warner showed the way on a batter-friendly wicket at Perth's Optus Stadium on day one as he plundered 164 off 211 balls to notch his 26th Test century and help the home side reach 5-346 at stumps on day one.

Warner was the only one of the Aussie batters who cashed in against Pakistan, with Smith among those to get out cheaply after making good starts. For Smith, it was another disappointing effort with the bat for a man desperate to return to the runs after admitting he'd been below his lofty standards recently.

'HORRIBLE': Aussie great reveals brutal reaction to David Warner century

NEW STAND: Usman Khawaja's eye-opening move after ICC imposes ban

'NOT ANYMORE': Kerry O'Keeffe complaint smacked down before Test

The Aussie vice-captain hit four boundaries on his way to 31 but was caught by Sarfaraz Ahmed after playing a tentative shot off a short-pitched delivery. Pakistan quick Khurram Shahzad (1-62) enticed Smith into the questionable shot and celebrated the prized scalp of the Aussie batter after catching his outside edge.

Steve Smith's impressive average continues to drop

It continued a somewhat worrying run of form for Smith, whose astonishing average of more than 63 has gradually fallen below 59 over his last 56 innings. Across that period, Smith has still managed to hit six centuries but has also been dismissed 14 times for single digit scores in Tests.

Smith admitted before the Pakistan series that his batting was " probably below my standards of what I want". The 34-year-old was also the only member of the Aussie team seen taking part in a gruelling practice session in 32C heat in the lead-up to the first Test, making his failing to register a big score even more frustrating.

The class of the veteran batter cannot be denied, however, with Smith the fourth greatest run-scorer in Australian Test cricket history. His average of 58.44 is also higher than Australia's top three Test batters of all time - Ricky Ponting (51.85), Allan Border (50.56) and Steve Waugh (51.06).

Many cricket fans have argued that Smith's Test average could only really go one way after he dominated red-ball cricket for so many years. Nevertheless, Smith's decline over the last couple of years has not gone unnoticed, with supporters backing the Aussie to rediscover his best.

Aussie batters fail to capitalise on starts

Smith was far from the only batter to fail to go on with a good start on the opening day against Pakistan in Perth, with Warner's opening partner Usman Khawaja out for 41 shortly after lunch. Khawaja fell victim to a sharp catch from Sarfaraz Ahmed off the bowling of Shaheen Shah Afridi.

Marnus Labuschagne came and went cheaply after being trapped LBW for 16 off the bowling of Faheem Ashraf. Smith's wicket brought Travis Head to the crease, and Australia's ODI World Cup final hero made a typically quick-fire 40 before he too fell short of a half century.

The short ball again proved to be Head's Achilles heel as the flashy No.5 gave Aamer Jamal his maiden Test wicket by cutting a delivery down the throat of Agha Salman at fly slip. Jamal followed his maiden Test wicket with the big scalp of Warner late in the day.

Mitchell Marsh (15 not out) and Alex Carey (14 not out) will resume day two at the crease for the Aussies, as the home side looks to put the match beyond Pakistan with a huge first innings score. Despite his teammates failing to turn their starts with the bat into big scores, Warner was pleased with the way the Aussies put pressure on Pakistan's inexperienced bowling attack.

"I thought we were able to put a bit of pressure on them, especially two debutants," Warner said. "Sometimes opposition teams come to Australia and they pitch one or two up and get driven back down the ground, then they get off that length.

"Where if you look at our bowlers, they try and consistently hit that length and they want you to hit straight past them. I don’t think I scored one run down the ground today, and that's when you know you've got them off their length.

"That's what I tried to do from ball one, drop that back leg if I got any width or pull if I can, and then try to get them to bowl to my scoring zones. I just don't think they bowled enough balls in the right area to make us play."

Sign up to our newsletter and score the biggest sport stories of the week.