KEY POINTS:
There will be a game within a game when New Zealand meets England this week in Napier in what is shaping as the series decider.
While England will be anxious to avoid being the first side to lose a test series in New Zealand since the 1983-84 edition, some Black Caps will be playing for a test spot on the England tour.
Under the microscope will be Matthew Bell, Mathew Sinclair, if he is selected for the third test, and Mark Gillespie.
Bell should make the tour because he's been in great form, the recent blip aside.
Sinclair is vulnerable. The only currency of any use is runs and there is a chance he will only get one more opportunity, most likely today.
There is a (small) queue of middle order talent lining up behind him, most notably Central Districts team-mate Greg Hay who has been in great form.
Peter Fulton is itching to get his spot back, though has done little to warrant it yet. James Marshall is another who seems to have slipped off the radar. Jesse Ryder would come into calculations if he was: one, fit and, two, wiser.
Gillespie is fast becoming an enigma. Yesterday confirmed his lack of ability in the field and he is a genuine rabbit with the bat.
He can bowl like a drain, too, as he did for much of this match, but has the happy knack of picking up big wickets with scorching deliveries.
He will likely survive the cut because the alternatives, Iain O'Brien and Michael Mason, might be safer with the ball but don't have that wicket-taking spark.
It seems likely, too, that a spot will be reserved for tyro Tim Southee.
New Zealand could do with the services of James Franklin, not least because of the left-arm variety he offers the seam attack but also because he would push Kyle Mills to No 10 in the order and give New Zealand one of the strongest lower orders. But he has not played in almost a year.
The 15-man team will most likely be named in early April, after the State Championship.
Definites: Daniel Vettori, Brendon McCullum, Jacob Oram, Kyle Mills, Chris Martin, Ross Taylor, Jamie How, Jeetan Patel.
Probables: Matthew Bell, Grant Elliot, Tim Southee, Mark Gillespie, Greg Hay, Peter Fulton.
Possibles: Mathew Sinclair, Craig Cumming, Iain O'Brien, Michael Mason, Jesse Ryder, James Marshall, James Franklin.
