ENGLAND coach Trevor Bayliss insists Joe Root remains at ease with his decision to bowl first even though Australia's batsmen put the tourists in trouble in the second Test.

Shaun Marsh's unbeaten 126 from number six helped Australia to 442-8, allowing Steve Smith to declare just when batting was about to become more difficult again under the Adelaide Oval lights on day two.

England were then doubtless relieved to see heavy drizzle return and restrict their reply to just 9.1 overs, in which they lost Mark Stoneman for 18 out of 29-1 at stumps.

Their position was not yet dire, if hardly promising, and Bayliss spelled out that Root would make the same marginal call again if he had the opportunity to do so.

"He wouldn't do anything different," said the Australian.

"It's well-documented that one of our challenges is taking wickets on flatter pitches, so Joe wanted to give our guys the best opportunity to take 20 wickets.

"It wasn't an easy decision. It wasn't taken lightly. We bowled pretty well and didn't get the results we deserved."

Bayliss was left wondering if England were suffering a little payback for the 2015 Trent Bridge Test, in which everything went perfectly as Stuart Broad took a brilliant career-best 8-15 and Australia were bowled out for 60.

He said: "That's the game of cricket. It might have evened it up from Trent Bridge two years ago, when they nicked everything. We've got to put it up with it and not let it frustrate us."

England are lacking a bowler of out-and-out pace in this squad to compare with Australia duo Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummins

They are hoping Mark Wood may be able to prove his fitness in next week's tour match in Perth – and then become a possible mid-series addition to their armoury.

Nonetheless, Bayliss said: "The bowlers we've got are more than capable of creating chances, which I thought we did.

"There's no use wishing that someone else is going to come, with a click of the fingers. That's all we've got."

Once again, primarily on day one in Adelaide, there were further instances of sledging between the players and Bayliss admits the verbal confrontations are not a side of modern cricket which especially pleases him.

He said: "Personally, probably not. That goes for both sides. I'd like to see the (stump) microphones turned down – I don't think that's necessarily a (good) thing for young kids watching.

"But it's grown men, playing a very competitive sport, and sometimes those emotions boil over. It's just red-blooded young males competing against each other (and) most of the time it's fairly light-hearted."

Marsh, meanwhile, could be rightly satisfied with his return to the home team at the age of 34, after his fifth Test century followed a 50 in Brisbane the previous week to silence those who queried his unexpected selection.

"I haven't really thought about all the external noise, with my selection in the team," said the son of former Australia opener Geoff, who played as an overseas player at Yorkshire last season.

"I'm just really happy I've got this last chance and with how it's going."