New Zealand batsman Ross Taylor steered a diplomatic line last night after the umpires' insistence on playing on in the Wellington gloom may have cost the chance of a famous test win.
The loss of Jacob Oram's wicket two balls before stumps were called in fading light atthe Basin Reserve may have done for New Zealand as they chased 438 for an improbable victory over England yesterday.
Taylor did not point the finger at umpires Steve Davis and Rudi Koertzen.
"Yes, it was disappointing to lose that wicket. It would have been good to go into tomorrow only having lost five wickets," he said. "But that's the umpires' call. We were inside and couldn't really tell from there how dark it was."
Taylor, who hit his second half century of the test yesterday, remains optimistic in the face of overwhelming odds today.
"The key is just to be positive. Obviously tomorrow morning will be crucial with the new ball. If we can see through that first half hour or hour without losing a wicket our chances will improve."
Taylor acknowledged New Zealand needed a big innings from at least one specialist batsman and was disappointed to get out, having got himself in and set against England's strong fast-medium attack.
"Obviously we've put pressure on Daniel [Vettori] and Brendon [McCullum] to get that big hundred. I got through the hard periods early on and to get to 50 [and then get out] was disappointing for the second time in the game."
He praised the work of England's batsmen and bowlers.
"We knew England would come hard at us and full credit to them. There's a few areas in our game where we have slipped up."
England seamer Stuart Broad, who bowled impressively and took two critical wickets in one over in just his second test, is delighted with the state of the game.
"The wicket suits us a bit more than in Hamilton and we've come out fighting. We've bowled nicely, batted nicely and we're really pleased with the position we're in."
