( CNN ) -- The sudden responsibility of leadership is resting well on Steve Smith 's shoulders and it needed a captain 's knock from him to lift Australia to a respectable 259 for five wickets after day one of the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne . Smith passed 1,000 Test runs for the year on the way to an undefeated 72 not out to send the majority of the huge 70,000 crowd at the MCG home happy . Brad Haddin was on 23 not out at stumps . Smith only took over from injured regular Australia skipper Michael Clarke for the second Test in Brisbane , which the home side won in four days to take a 2-0 lead in the best of four match series . Many expected the experienced Haddin to be elevated , but instead the selectors opted for the 25-year-old Smith and he has repaid their faith . He scored his second century of the series in Brisbane and is well set for a third in Melbourne when the match resumes on the second day . Clarke , injured his troublesome back and hamstring during the first Test in Adelaide , determined to play to honor his great friend and teammate Phillip Hughes , who died after a freak accident in a match in Sydney at the end of November . Clarke , Smith and David Warner all scored centuries in the emotion charged match , which had to be delayed following Hughes ' death and funeral . Warner , who has also hit 1,000 Test runs in the calendar year , did not add a single run to that tally Friday , dismissed by Indian paceman Umesh Yadav for a duck . Chris Rogers and Shane Watson rallied the home side with a dogged 115-run stand but both were dismissed in a five-minute spell after lunch . Shaun Marsh ( 32 ) and debutant Joe Burns ( 13 ) both made starts but were unable to capitalize , leaving Smith , with good support from Haddin , to take Australia to the close in a respectable position . Yadav and fellow paceman Mohammed Shami both ended with two wickets for India , which has not won a Test at the MCG for 33 years . The tradition of starting Test matches in Australia on Boxing Day dates back to 1974 , when arch-rival England was the tourist . In the 40 years since , it has proved to be a popular move , with vast crowds coming to the MCG in festive mood . Last year saw a world record crowd of over 91,000 pack the ground as Australia was on its way to inflicting a humbling 5-0 defeat on England in the Ashes Series . Test cricket matches , the longest form of the game and lasting five days , also started on Boxing Day between New Zealand and Sri Lanka in Christchurch and South Africa and the West Indies in Port Elizabeth . Like at the MCG , New Zealand 's match had an added poignancy following a tragedy , with the Hagley Oval being used for the first time since Christchurch was struck by a deadly earthquake in 2011 , which claimed 185 lives . Kiwi skipper Brendon McCullum marked the occasion with a stunning 195 off just 134 balls to lift the home side to a dominant 429 for seven wickets at stumps on the first day .
Honors even after first day of Boxing Day Test at MCG . Australia 259 for 7 declared at home against England . Captain Steve Smith undefeated on 72 . Chris Cairns and Shane Watson also scored half centuries .