Sydney, Jan 4: For a batting side, it doesn’t get any better than this. Day 2 of the SCG’s hundredth Test belonged to the marauding Australians, plundering runs at will and bettering the Indian attack into submission. While Ricky Ponting scored his first Test century in 33 innings, Michael Hussey went past the 50 mark in an unbeaten innings. But the star of the show was the diminutive Australian captain, Michael Clarke. Scoring his first double-ton, the batsman put his team in a position of enviable strenght, largely in a record-breaking partnership with Ponting. Day 3 seems ominous with Clarke and Hussey still going strong. Meanwhile, take a look at the brilliant numbers from Australia’s day of batting glory.

• Michael Clarke (251*) made his maiden double century in Test cricket in his 78th Test. His previous best was 168 against New Zealand at Wellington in 2009-‘10.

• Clarke’s innings is the highest ever by an Australian captain against India, eclipsing Greg Chappell’s 204 at Sydney in 1980-‘81.

• Clarke’s innings is in fact the second highest by any captain against India, after England’s Graham Gooch’s 333 at Lord’s in 1990.

• Clarke’s innings is the second highest for Australia against India, after Ricky Ponting’s 257 at Melbourne in 2003-‘04.

• Clarke’s innings is the highest ever by an Australian batsman at Sydney. The previous best was Doug Walters’ 242 against West Indies in 1968-‘69. Incidentally, the previous highest score by an Australian batsman against India at Sydney was 223 by Justin Langer in 1999-‘00.

• There have been only two better scores by any batsman at Sydney – 287 by England’s Tip Foster in 1903-‘04 and 277 by West Indies’ Brian Lara in 1992-‘93.

• This was Clarke’s 18th century overall and his fourth in his last 11 innings.

• Ricky Ponting (134) scored his first Test century after a gap of almost two years and 33 innings. His last century had come against Pakistan at Hobart in 2009-‘10 when he made 209 off 354 balls.

• The century was Ponting’s 40th in Test cricket. He thus became the third batsman after Sachin Tendulkar (51) and Jacques Kallis (41) to score 40 Test centuries.

• Ricky Ponting and Michael Clarke set a plethora of records during their 288-run partnership. Take a look:

· On 100, the pair put on Australia’s 100th century partnership at Sydney (in the 100th Test at this ground.)

· On 100, the pair put on their fourth century partnership. The other three were: 352 v Pakistan at Hobart in 2009-‘10, 210 v India at Adelaide in 2007-‘08 and 113 v South Africa at Johannesburg in 2008-‘09 – all for the fourth wicket.

· On 100, Ponting equalled Tendulkar in terms of putting on century partnerships. These two have now put on 84 century partnerships. Only Rahul Dravid – with 88 century stands – is ahead.

· On 200, Ponting provided the 16th instance of him getting involved in a double-century partnership. This takes him ahead of Rahul Dravid’s tally of 15. Only Tendulkar and Kallis (18 each) are ahead of Ponting in forging most double-century partnerships.This was also the fourth time that Ponting was getting involved in a double-century partnership against India. With this he now shares the record with Clive Lloyd, Javed Miandad, Younis Khan and Jacques Kallis.

· On 211, the pair established a new record for Australia’s highest fourth-wicket partnership against India. Interestingly, these two held the previous record made at Adelaide in 2007-‘08.

· On 218, the pair set a new record for the highest partnership for any wicket against India at Sydney, obliterating the 218-run stand between David Boon and Geoff Marsh for the first wicket in 1985-‘86.

· On 240, the pair established the highest-ever partnership for any wicket for Australia against India, beating the 239-run partnership for the fifth wicket between Steve Waugh and Ricky Ponting at Adelaide in 1999-‘00.

· On 288, the pair put on the highest ever fourth-wicket partnership against India, bettering the 287-run stand between Pakistan’s Javed Miandad and Zaheer Abbas at Faisalabad in 1982-‘83.

• Clarke added 204 runs to his overnight score – from 47* to 251*. He became only the fourth batsman to score 200 runs in a day’s play against India after England’s Wally Hammond, Australia’s Don Bradman and West Indies’s Rohan Kanhai.

• Clarke’s innings (251*) is more than India’s first innings total. He provided the fifth instance of an Australian batsman outscoring India’s complete innings. Others to do so are Don Bradman (twice), Dean Jones and Justin Langer.