Darwin: He may rank among the world's best batsmen, but Australian cricketer Mike Hussey on Monday described staying at the crease as a "real battle."

Hussey, who recently undertook a re-assessment of his batting, said he had often felt unable to hit the ball confidently during his time on the Australian team.

"To be honest I feel like my batting's been a real battle for two years," he said.

"I've just been sort of hanging in there and grinding away and it feels like every innings has been a real vigil and it didn't feel like I could play a lot of shots with a lot of power or conviction."

The 33-year-old, who boasts a Test average of 68.38 after 25 matches and the highest one-day international average of any player, with 55.62 after 91 matches, said he was constantly aware of his faults while batting.

"Even in good conditions where I felt like other guys were able to play their shots quite comfortably and hit down the ground and drive and pull well, I still felt like I was struggling for timing a fair bit," said Hussey, who made his one-day international debut in 2004 and played his first Test the following year.

"I'd play a defensive shot off the back foot and think 'I should have pulled that ball' but I hadn't seen it quick enough or got into the right position quick enough."

Hussey who has adjusted his technique under the eye of Western Australia coach Tom Moody, scored 85 runs in the first one-day match against Bangladesh on Saturday.

"It feels good but there's always going to be times when I'm going to battle, I'm sure," he said.