Walters said the pitch Hughes had excelled on in Durban to become the youngest player to notch back-to-back tons had been similar to a lot of English wickets. And he added the English attack was unlikely to be as fearsome as the one stared down and conquered by Hughes in South Africa.

"The Ashes will be the one he'll be judged on," said Walters, who famously failed to match his successes in Australia away to England. "I don't think he'll get any worse [wickets]. I don't see why he'd have any trouble in England and England won't be able to find a bowling attack much better than that [in South Africa]."

Such has been Hughes's rise that some of the great names of Australian cricket - Bradman, Waugh, Ponting and Walters himself - keep echoing around him as the cricketing world struggles for a point of reference to define his performances.

Already this season Hughes got one up on Bradman, reaching the 1000-run-mark for NSW at a younger age than the great Don. Walters got there earlier than Hughes, just 20.

Walters also managed a ton on his Test debut, a feat that eluded Hughes in Johannesburg, where he was mocked for a fourth-ball duck in his first innings before rebounding with a solid 75 in the second dig.

On Friday, Hughes broke through with his first Test ton, lodging himself at No.4 on the list of the youngest Australian centurions - again with Walters just above him. But his century in the second innings at Durban put him clear of the pack. It took Walters three years after his debut to rack up a pair of hundreds. It took Bradman 20.

"He's been sensational and I'm very happy for him," Walters said. "It gets harder as you get older. It's easier when you start - especially when you start off in that vein. It doesn't get any easier. I guess when you're young you don't have the nerves that you get a little bit later and you've really got nothing to lose. He's made the best of it and hopefully there are many, many more to come."

In the process of scoring his twin hundreds, Hughes broke West Indian George Headley's 79-year record as the youngest to reach the remarkable milestone. Typically, he played it with soft hands. "It was a record I didn't know about, to be honest," he said. "I don't go home and get on the computer and google records. When I walked into the sheds and a couple of guys mentioned it, it was one very special moment. Definitely exciting. I'm not one to go home and go through the stats. I'd heard of George Headley, but it was a long time ago now."

Steve Waugh debuted at 20, a shining star in a dull era for the game in Australia, and retired a batting legend. But it took him a while to get started and he didn't score a century until his 27th Test. He achieved the feat of a century in both innings of a Test once, as did Walters.

Waugh's erstwhile comrade at the crease, Justin Langer, is effusive in his praise of what Hughes has achieved in only two Tests. "For a young fella, he must have a mind like steel," said Langer, who also called for Hughes to be included in Australia's limited-overs and Twenty20 teams. "There was all the talk about Test selection and he made runs.

"Then he made the duck and then they talked about a new plan about bouncing him, and what did he do? He just kept grinning at them - he's like a little smiling assassin. He's under pressure on and off the field, and now he's peeled off two hundreds. It's just extraordinary. I can't remember being this pumped for a young player ever."

Ponting also debuted for his country at 20. It took him seven Tests to make a ton, but his feat of making centuries in both innings of a Test on three occasions leaves Hughes with a mark to aim at.

But the pair share something in common - a feature that stands them apart from the teammates and their peers. Both played first-class cricket without owning a car. They had no need: neither had a driving licence, a mark of the hours dedicated to their sport.

Hughes is still trying to make sense of his amazing debut tour. "Getting my baggy green in the first Test, coming off the duck … it's a game I'll never forget. I like to keep things very simple. I took that duck as, that's cricket. You have your good days and your bad days. I knew one or two days down the track I was going to get another opportunity to bat. That's how I like to look at it. Cricket's a funny game, really. When you're up, you really want to keep going. That's sport. I just know things can turn around." THE EXUBERANCE OF YOUTH

. Phillip Hughes (Australia) 20 years, 98 days

Second Test v South Africa, Durban, March 8, 2009

. George Headley (W Indies) 20 years, 271 days

Third Test v England, Georgetown, February 25, 1930

. Garfield Sobers (W Indies) 21 years, 234 days

Fourth Test v Pakistan, Georgetown, March 19, 1958

. Sunil Gavaskar (India)

21 years, 282 days

Fifth Test v West Indies, Port of Spain, April 18, 1971

. Lawrence Rowe (W Indies)

23 years, 44 days

First Test v NZ, Kingston, February 21, 1972

. Doug Walters (Australia) 23 years, 59 days

Fifth Test v West Indies, Sydney, February 18, 1969