"We've got to earn the right to that," captain Brendon McCullum said ahead of the second test against England which was delayed last night due to rain. "For so long we've sat in the doldrums and our performances didn't warrant teams playing us in three-test series. We need to get back to a level of respect where teams want to do that. The first test at Lord's was a full house every day, hopefully we keep doing that."
A New Zealand win would also add to a reign of six undefeated test series.
McCullum said they would not relinquish their intention to attack.
"Playing this style gives us our greatest opportunity to win the test and the series. We went down [at Lord's] but played some pretty good cricket throughout. It was a credit to England being good enough to run us down. The more we do that, the more we become comfortable with that, although, at times, we will be beaten.
"When you lose a test, people's thoughts head in a different direction. The first thing they attack is the way we played our cricket, but I make no apologies."
During the 2013 tour, Kane Williamson said the swinging Duke ball compounded the difficulty of scoring at the ground. "If you have limited experience with it, it's concerning how late it moves. Decisions need to be made later. If you play the first line [out of the hand] you start nicking half volleys, whereas at home you'd smash those straight or through the covers. You eventually adjust but it takes some working out."
Williamson's experience in English conditions could come to the fore, as they did at Lord's when he reached the honours board with 132, his 10th test century.
He has featured in four English first-class seasons - two each with Gloucestershire and Yorkshire. He's signed for a fifth, again with Yorkshire, who he helped to last year's county championship.
Headingley has become his home away from home. During 2013 and 2014, he made 1032 runs at 54.32.
Ford, the driving force behind the Black Caps
