Campbell Kellaway has offered a glimpse of why he is regarded as a future Australian Test opener, with an eye-catching 82 for the Prime Minister's XI against England Lions.

One year after Sam Konstas forced his way into the Test side with a century for the Prime Minister's XI, Kellaway threatened to make a similar score on Saturday.

But while his hopes of a century were ended with a superb one-handed reflex catch by Tom Haines at first slip, Kellaway still impressed at Manuka Oval.

The PM's XI were 2-157 at the halfway point of the opening day of the two-day pink-ball clash, with England sending out their reserve side and not using the game as a warm-up for the Gabba Test.

Kellaway's runs are unlikely to have been seen by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Saturday, because he was marrying his partner Jodie Haydon at the time.

But they will not have gone unnoticed by Australian selectors, with Kellaway labelled a ready-made Test player by Victoria coach Chris Rogers.

The 23-year-old looked at his best just before his dismissal, taking on England left-armer Josh Hull after the tourists went short to the opener.

He hooked Hull for one six, cut him for another and hit a cracking pull shot to the boundary as he took 24 runs off two overs from the quick.

The left-hander also hit the Lions' best bowler Josh Tongue for two boundaries behind backward point earlier in the day, and took on spinner Haines.

There was one chance when James Rew put Kellaway down on 22 at slip in the first session.

His runs came after he also hit a half-century against a NSW attack of Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon and Josh Hazlewood earlier this month, prompting Rogers to label Kellaway the long-term successor to Usman Khawaja.

Meanwhile, Konstas had shown good signs early for the hosts in Canberra on his way to 36, with his shot of the day a drive to the long-on boundary off Tongue.

But any hopes of repeating last year's century ended when he used his feet to Haines and skied the spinner to mid-on, one ball after clipping the Englishman to the mid-wicket boundary.