After thirty-three years of waiting, India look set to finally notch up another series win in the Land Of The Long, White Cloud, but Daniel Vettori's men certainly won't go down without a fight.

The second Test in Napier will have served as a reminder to the Indians that while they have thoroughly dominated their hosts thus far, the Black Caps are no push-overs and are capable of putting the men from the sub-continent in a spot of bother.

With only a draw required to seal the series, it would be easy to adopt a negative approach to the game, playing for the draw from the onset, but Mahendra Dhoni's troops have no plans to do so.

"It's one of the most crucial games you will play. Once you have the mindset of going for a draw you are not aggressive enough to win a Test match. We will approach the game in the same way we approached the first or the second Test," Dhoni said in the build-up to the game.

It's must-win stuff for the Kiwis, and Vettori admits that a drawn series would not be a bad result.

"It's not a line of thinking I always think along but I think we realise a one-all series would be a great result for us, so any opportunity we have to win the Test match we have to take," he said.

"If that means putting ourselves under pressure with a loss then I definitely think we will go down that road."

New Zealand once again illustrated in Napier that while the likes of Chris Martin and Iain O'Brien are honest and hard-working seamers, the team lacks an out-and-out pace bowler who can knock over batsman on a flat track.

Tim Southee and Kyle Mills have been added to the Kiwis' squad and Southee must be a favourite to replace Jeetan Patel in the starting XI.

Such a move would be hard on Patel who has held is own at McLean Park and at times looked more threatening than Vettori, but New Zealand need a strike bowler (especially if the wicket offers good bounce as is expected) and will be hoping Southee can fill the role.

Alternatively, the selectors could make a bold move and drop all-rounder James Franklin for Southee. Franklin remains in consideration primarily due to Jacob Oram's injury rather than his own good form, but whilst the Kiwi's batting was on top form in Napier, the selectors should be mindful of the fact that their batsman did not perform in Hamilton and that the top three have struggled throughout.

At the top of the order Martin Guptill and Tim McIntosh have, despite all their promise, failed to deliver, with the highest opening stand produced by the duo in this series a miserly 21. Both players have made decent starts to their Test careers and will be looking to get back on track in Wellington.

Thrown a lifeline by Daniel Flynn's hand injury, Jamie How failed to capitalise on his good fortune in the second Test, and should be replaced by Flynn if the 23-year-old returns to full fitness.

India are unlikely to make too many changes to a winning line-up, with the only change on the cards being the return of Dhoni, if the Indian skipper is able to recover from the back complaint that forced him to withdraw from the second Test.

Whilst Munaf Patel failed to impress at McLean Park, the five wickets he picked up in the first Test should be enough to ensure he keeps his spot, although the selectors may be tempted to give fellow seamer Lakshmipathy Balaji a run before the conclusion of the tour.

Key Men

New Zealand: Against a team as high in quality as the current Indian outfit, one can't afford to have any non-contributing passengers in the line-up, and to a large extent that's what James Franklin has been in the series thus far. Yet to take a wicket in four innings and with only 66 runs to his name, Franklin needs to start contributing to the New Zealand cause if they are to square the series

India: The return of Mahendra Dhoni is always a welcome sight, but with Virender Sehwag's rather dismal performance as skipper last week still fresh in the mind, Dhoni's shrewd captaincy will be vital in the Indian's pursuit of a series win.

Prediction

One can't help but feel that New Zealand missed out on their best chance to pick up a win in Napier. This clash is likely to either herald an Indian victory or a draw.

Last Five Results

2009: Second Test: Match Drawn at Napier
2009: First Test: India won by 10 wickets at Hamilton
2003: Second Test: Match Drawn at Mohali
2003: First Test: Match Drawn at Ahmedabad
2002: Second Test: New Zealand won four wickets at Hamilton

Probable Teams

New Zealand: Daniel Vettori (captain), Daniel Flynn, James Franklin, Martin Guptill, Tim McIntosh, Brendon McCullum, Chris Martin, Iain O'Brien, Jesse Ryder, Tim Southee, Ross Taylor.

India: Mahendra Dhoni (captain), Gautam Gambhir, Virender Sehwag, Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, VVS Laxman, Yuvraj Singh, Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan, Munaf Patel, Ishant Sharma.

Dates: 3-7 April
Morning session: 11:00-13:00 (20:00-12:00 GMT)
Afternoon session: 13:40-15:40 (00:40 - 02:40 GMT)
Evening session: 14:00-18:00 (03:00 - 05:00 GMT)

Match referee: Alan Hurst
Umpires: Daryl Harper and Simon Taufel
Third Umpire: Gary Baxter

Julia Harris