Australia A

Tough task ... Phillip Hughes has been impressive recently, but will have to step it up against Dale Steyn and Vernon Philander. Photo: Brendan Esposito

FACING Dale Steyn and Vernon Philander just got that bit tougher for Phillip Hughes. The dumped Test opener must tame South Africa's star-studded pace attack on an early-season green top as he aims to prove to national selectors he is worthy of another shot at the baggy green.

Hughes has impressed many, not least John Inverarity and Ricky Ponting, with his red-hot form at the start of the summer but the stakes will be raised on Friday as he lines up for Australia A against the touring Proteas at the SCG.

Instead of quelling state and county attacks, which have proven cannon fodder for him the past few months, he must repel arguably the best fast-bowling battalion in the world.

The SCG green cricket pitch

Grassy top ... the green SCG pitch. Photo: Brendan Esposito

The world's top-ranked pace bowler, Steyn, will be there; so too the No.2, Philander, who claimed Hughes's wicket three out of four times during last year's two-Test series in South Africa.

The Proteas' attack might be similar to the one Hughes dominated in 2009 but Steyn said his teammates had learnt from the ''big time'' blunders they made, which allowed the then 20-year-old to blast twin centuries in just his second Test.

''I think we summed him up badly and he made us pay,'' Steyn said. ''I think when he came down to South Africa more recently we'd definitely done our analysis a lot better of the Australians, especially him and he didn't get away from us.

''I think we went short and wide [in 2009] and we didn't realise that he could cut so well.

''In the next series, we came a lot straighter and we kind of tucked him up a lot more. It was a lot tidier in all honesty. We didn't give him the freebies that he got in the previous series.''

There might not be many easy runs either in the SCG pitch, which on Thursday bore much resemblance to the green monster that confronted Hughes 11 months ago in Hobart when his Test career was brought to a screeching halt by New Zealand.

Fortunately for him, this pitch has been tipped by SCG curator Tom Parker not to play as lively as it appears though the likely overcast conditions in the morning will present challenges.

''I wouldn't let the colour fool you,'' Parker said.

''If we get a bit of moisture in the air it might swing around a bit but as far as the pitch is concerned it should be quite consistent.''

Hughes endured a tumultuous off-season, which produced a controversial defection to South Australia, omission from an Australia A squad but also an encouraging run with Worcestershire.

His stint with the English county enabled him to put into practice the changes he made to his technique during an eight-week camp with batting mentor Neil D'Costa and coaches at Cricket Australia's Centre of Excellence in Brisbane.

The end result is a player who is now more capable of hitting to all parts of the ground and therefore harder to pin down for bowlers.

''A couple of years ago, my strength was off-side whereas now I feel like I can play all around the field and that's a big thing in all formats,'' Hughes said.

Hughes and fellow openers Rob Quiney, Alex Doolan and Liam Davis are among those who will be keen to impress at the SCG in order to keep the pressure on incumbent duo David Warner and Ed Cowan.

''It's an opportunity for everyone in this team, everyone's here through performance,'' Hughes said.

''To get selected at the top, you need runs behind you and perform day in, day out. I know selectors want some real consistent performances.''