Cricket: NZ hope it's third time lucky in decider
The tourists won the Twenty20 and one-day international series last month by a 2-1 margin.
On both occasions the respective series were tied at 1-1 but England stepped up a level to dominate the third match.
New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum says a different dynamic in the Test series - locked at 0-0 after rain-affected draws in Dunedin in Wellington - left him optimistic there would be no repeat of the short form outcomes.
"We didn't stand up, didn't perform that well and I thought England were excellent in both those deciding games," McCullum said.
"We were a little bit off which was disappointing when you've got a series on the line.
"There's a few nuances within our team setup which have changed things. And five-day cricket is different from a one-off day as well."
McCullum said a Test series win over world No.2-ranked England would be a personal career highlight.
The fact the series has been evenly-fought indicates New Zealand have made good strides since their Test hammerings in South Africa two months ago, he said.
"I think we're learning a lot about ourselves and where we actually are at in terms of our game.
"But we know that the third Test will be what we'll be decided on."
McCullum indicated he will send England in to bat for a third straight time if successful with the toss.
However, he needs to first inspect an Eden Park pitch which is likely to be the quickest of the series.
England skipper Alastair Cook says his team will take a patient approach when pushing for the series win which was widely anticipated two weeks ago.
"If you start chasing the game from the first day then you can come unstuck," Cook said.
"You need to earn the right to get yourself into position to win the game."
"If you get five days of good weather in a test match it's normally good enough to get a result."
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