England make steady progress

Resuming in the morning already in a powerful position at the Basin Reserve 148 runs ahead on four without loss, the tourists were hopeful of progressing towards a major total before they begin their push for victory.

They achieved that objective despite the loss of three wickets in the afternoon session and progressed into a 321-runs lead after reaching a comfortable 177 for four at tea.

England's innings suffered an early setback with captain Michael Vaughan falling in the sixth over of the day when he edged seamer Kyle Mills behind to wicketkeeper Brendon McCullum. But after that early loss, the tourists seemed assured at the crease throughout a 106-run partnership between Essex opener Alastair Cook and fellow left-hander Andrew Strauss.

Neither player scored a half-century in the opening Test defeat at Hamilton but both seemed on course to reach that milestone and beyond until they fell in the space of two overs. Cook, dropped on five by McCullum five balls prior to Vaughan's dismissal, had progressed to his first half-century of the series shortly before lunch.

He dominated the partnership with Strauss and seemed on course to claim England's first century when he pushed tamely at Mills and edged behind for a determined 60. Strauss, yet to make a big impression having been recalled for his series, followed in the next over when he was given lbw to all-rounder Jacob Oram playing around his pads for 44.

Kevin Pietersen, without a half-century in his previous nine Test innings, was fortunate not to be given lbw by umpire Rudi Koertzen after reaching 10 having pushed forward tentatively to left-arm spinner Daniel Vettori.

But if he was fortunate then, his luck ran out seven overs later as the non-striker when he was run out by seamer Chris Martin attempting to stop a fierce drive off Ian Bell in his delivery stride. Martin stooped to try and stop the ball as Bell drove down the ground, but instead of collecting it the ball deflected on to the stumps with Pietersen out of his ground.

New batsman Paul Collingwood could have fallen in the next over before he had scored when he came down the wicket trying to hit Vettori over the top but instead hit the ball high in the air but Mark Gillespie, running back from mid-off made a hash of the catch and pushed it over the boundary.

Ian Bell also had his fair share of good fortune when he drove Martin high in the air towards backward point in the next over, but Mathew Sinclair was only able to get one hand on it before it fell to ground.