Steve Smith calmly brought up a ton, while Mitchell Johnson counterattacked clinically as Australia raced to 6-351 at lunch on day three of the second Test.

Smith (110no) brought up his century in the third last over of the session, but the 25-year-old was a bit-part player in an incredible 104-run stand with Johnson (67no).

The hosts trail by 57 runs at the Gabba, where the contest continued to ebb and flow on Friday morning.

Australia resumed on 4-221 and India’s pacemen Varun Aaron and Umesh Yadav quickly asserted their dominance.

The runs dried up, with Mitch Marsh and Brad Haddin both dismissed in the first hour.

Australia were 6-247 and the tourists verbalised their confidence – Virat Kohli among a handful of chirpy players welcoming Johnson to the crease.

“They’ve fired up the wrong bloke here. Don’t do it to Mitchell Johnson,” Shane Warne predicted, while calling the game for the Nine Network.

Not for the first time, Warne proved prophetic.

Johnson, who failed to take a wicket as India amassed a first-innings total of 408, proceeded to crash a belligerent half-century off 37 deliveries.

Ishant Sharma, called into the attack after Haddin’s dismissal, copped the initial treatment.

Sharma’s two overs cost 25 runs and his spell ended then and there.

Johnson swung freely – pulling short balls off his chest and lashing wide deliveries over the slips.

He smacked three consecutive boundaries off Aaron, prompting captain MS Dhoni to run up from behind the wickets and counsel the express paceman.

Aaron, who went off the field in the first session due to a shoulder injury, has figures of 1-113 from 20 overs.

Dhoni regularly tweaked his fields and offspinner Ravichandran Ashwin was thrown the ball, but the onslaught continued.

Johnson crashed an incredible six off the bowling of Ashwin, dispatching the ball over his head and into the crowd.

Smith cut a wide ball from Aaron to become the 28th player in the history of cricket to score a century in their first Test as captain, and the ninth Australian.