The Black Cap batsmen will go into next week's cricket test with Australia brimming with confidence after an impressive final day in the tour match with Australia A in Brisbane.
The four-day match was drawn but time in the middle was the order of the day, as neither side interested in chasing a result. Captain Ross Taylor and Jesse Ryder scored centuries, with the latter taking particular glee in dispatching the ball out of Allan Border Oval, equalling a first class record with 16 sixes.
New Zealand ended the day on 467-6 with an overall lead of 495 but, more importantly, the tourists' top six all appear in good knick as the Black Caps chase their first test win over the old foe since 1993.
Along with Taylor and Ryder, Brendon McCullum scored a quick-fire 146 in the first innings, while opening partner Martin Guptill returned scores of 43 and 47. Kane Williamson was dismissed cheaply twice but came into the game on the back of an unbeaten 284 for Northern Districts, and No 6 Dean Brownlie, who finished the day on 53 not out, was also a centurion in the last round of domestic cricket.
That all bodes well for the Black Caps' chances at the Gabba in Brisbane, considering the injury-hit Australian side will be fielding three bowlers - Ben Cutting, Mitchell Starc and James Pattinson - from the A team, although none bowled a significant number of overs today.
