Ashes 2013-14: Brad Haddin has thrown down the gauntlet to Matt Prior in battle of the keeper-batsmen This is the fourth head-to-head series between Haddin and Prior. The first in 2009 saw honours shared; the second in 2010-11 was won by Prior; and the honours last summer were taken by Haddin, who set a record of 29 dismissals in the series apart from out-scoring his counterpart. Haddin stretched his lead at the Gabba by making 94 in time of crisis on day one, when this series was there to be shaped. It was far more valuable than most Test centuries, and he followed up with 53 off 55 balls before the declaration, playing with a freedom that Prior had before his run-drought began last summer. Here Haddin picked up with his score on 7 on day two, eased to 57 by lunch and powered to his fourth Test hundred well before tea. Carberry had no chance to compensate except when Haddin as non-striker tried a risky single, on 18, and had to stretch to beat Carberry's dive and underarm throw. Australia look so much stronger for having Haddin at full throttle in their engine-room. Their specialist batting is ropey in parts, with particular doubts over the defensive techniques of Steve Smith and George Bailey, but Haddin is there to fill in the gaps in the home side's batting. Being Australian, he is so strong on the legside, with the on-drive his speciality, where lofted or along the ground. He sets up with his right shoulder outside offstump so that the straight ball is going to be hit legside. England missed a trick by not bowling fullish at Haddin on fourth stump. But even then he might have got away with it, as the ball did not move sideways the whole innings. In Australia Haddin has the nice fat average of 47, compared with 36 overall. Even when Clarke was majestic at the other end, Haddin was a near-equal partner. He contributed 86 to the record stand, against Clarke's 109, and together they hummed along at nearly four an over. In two senses Haddin made the most of his second reprieve, when Ben Stokes had him caught behind for 51 - off a no-ball. Haddin not only carried on to his century, he chose to remind Stokes at the end of his over that his curfew-time was midnight - a reference to Stokes being sent home from the Lions tour last winter. With Haddin being bottomhanded, and the Adelaide ground an Oval, he went to town against Graeme Swann, slog-sweeping him for three sixes and striking five in all. Before 1972 no Australian wicketkeeper had scored a Test hundred. Since then Rod Marsh, Adam Gilchrist and Haddin have made up for lost time, all too often at England's expense.