England eye further success

England made further inroads into New Zealand's batting line-up after Jimmy Anderson vindicated his selection with three wickets in on the second day of the second Test.

After were dismissed for 342 shortly before lunch, Lancashire seamer Anderson produced a stunning spell either side of the interval to dismiss openers Matthew Bell and Jamie How and Mathew Sinclair, but an unbroken 69-run stand between Stephen Fleming and Ross Taylor guided New Zealand to 100 for three at tea.

Anderson dismissed both openers before lunch and removed Sinclair after the interval during a superb opening spell of 9-2-20-3.

England should have made further inroads with Fleming, playing his final Test at his home ground, missed on 18 by Collingwood at second slip off Ryan Sidebottom and Taylor dropped in almost identical circumstances by the same player off Stuart Broad on 23.

It was the perfect tonic for Anderson, whose tour prospects looked bleak just a week earlier when he was released to go and play for Auckland to get match practice.

England had resumed their innings on 291 for five this morning with all eyes on 25-year-old Ambrose, in only his second Test, and whether he could claim the three runs required to break a run of 66 successive overseas Tests without an England wicketkeeper scoring a century.

Warwickshire wicketkeeper Ambrose had to wait for his moment of glory while Paul Collingwood, who resumed on 48, reached his landmark first by cutting Kyle Mills for four.

Ambrose's wait for his moment of glory came in the next over with a streaky four off all-rounder Jacob Oram when he fended a short ball off the splice which just evaded the slips down to the third man boundary.

He was immediately applauded by the crowd but fell in the next over when he edged Mills low to Ross Taylor at second slip for a superb 102 having hit 16 fours and two sixes.

England's last four wickets fell for just 42 runs with seamer Mark Gillespie claiming wickets with successive balls to finish off the innings and leave New Zealand facing a testing seven overs before lunch.