The Pakistanis imploded after Salman cracked his maiden Test century slumping from 241 for three to 292 for nine when bad light stopped play with eight overs left to bowl.

Recalled leg-spinner MacGill did the damage, relishing his Test return after nine months in limbo to snare 5-87 off 22 overs while leading paceman Glenn McGrath claimed 3-38 as Pakistan once again disintegrated.

"There was a real eagerness to continue on from where I left off last time I bowled and because I've been bowling well (for NSW) I expected it to happen and I was keen to show everybody what I've got ... it didn't work out that way early but I'm happy with what I got," said MacGill, who went for 18 off his opening two overs.

"Fortunately, at my age I knew I had to make technical adjustments and get back to a bowling rhythm and it worked out," added MacGill who now has 157 wickets in his 33rd Test match.

Salman kissed the ground as he reached his debut century and was out shortly after for a determined 108 in over four and a half hours with 16 boundaries.

The 20-year-old left-hander from Lahore had a hundred at his mercy before he was needlessly run out for 70 in the first innings of last week's second Melbourne Test defeat.

But he made sure of the three-figures on Sunday as he defied Australia's stellar bowling attack.

McGrath, who was curiously held back from bowling by skipper Ricky Ponting for four hours after his initial morning spell, claimed Salman's wicket with the third ball of his second spell, caught behind by Adam Gilchrist in the 67th over of the innings.

Yet again Pakistan disintegrated losing eight wickets for 99 runs after they were looking in good shape at 193 for one.

The collapse took on a predictable re-run of other batting debacles in Australia's four-day victories in Perth by 491 runs and in Melbourne by nine wickets.

At stumps, Kamran Akmal was unbeaten on 35 with Mohammad Asif yet to score.

Pakistan profited from three dropped catches to put on a 102-run opening stand between Salman and Yasir Hameed, promoted to opener from No.3 with Imran Farhat axed.

Yasir was dropped twice off consecutive balls on three and for a third time on 56, before he top-edged a sweep off wrist-spinner Shane Warne to Michael Clarke at short fine leg shortly after lunch. It was Test cricket's leading wicket-taker Warne's 562nd wicket.

Yasir had two lives off consecutive balls in Jason Gillespie's opening over and second of the match.

Warne spilled a two-handed midriff catch at first slip off the third delivery and next delivery Gilchrist brought more groans from the home crowd when he got a glove to the ball but grassed the chance.

McGrath put Yasir down for a third time off a difficult running catch at deep mid-off before Yasir perished in the same Warne over.

Nearing tea, Younis Khan misjudged a MacGill leg-break and spooned a catch straight to McGrath at mid-off for 46 leaving Pakistan 193 for two.

Stand-in skipper Yousuf Youhana, who topscored with 111 in the Melbourne Test, lasted 21 minutes before he fell to MacGill, snapped up by Warne in the slips.

Salman's dismissal signalled a clatter of wickets amid indisciplined Pakistan batting.

Asim Kamal gave an easy catch off McGrath to Gillespie at mid-off for 10 and Shahid Afridi, who got off the mark with a six off McGrath, smacked a MacGill full toss straight to McGrath for 12.

Navedul Hasan was out for a first-ball duck, leg before wicket to McGrath and Shoaib Akhtar was bowled by a McGrath yorker for a four-ball duck.

Danish Kaneria gave MacGill his fifth wicket of the innings when deceived by a leg-break and was caught by Gilchrist for three.