Brendon McCullum believes the onus is on the bowlers to press home the advantage earned by the New Zealand batsmen in the first Test against Pakistan in Dunedin.

The Black Caps were 404 for eight in their first innings when bad light ended a rain-shortened day two at the University Oval, thanks largely to a seventh-wicket stand of 164 between McCullum and captain Daniel Vettori.

Vettori was dismissed one run short of his fifth Test ton when he edged Umar Gul to Kamran Akmal just before stumps, while McCullum was Gul's first scalp when he was outdone by a superb yorker on the stroke of lunch which left the hosts on 375 for seven.

Only 14 minutes of play were possible in the second session before the rain kept the players off the field for over three and a half hours, but McCullum was confident that despite losing so much time a result was still possible.

"There are still three days to go in the game and we've got a good, sizeable first-innings total so if we bowl well then hopefully we'll give ourselves a real opportunity," the wicketkeeper said.

"The wicket is pretty good but it certainly does have a little bit in it if you bend your back.

"We've obviously got to strike them pretty early to give ourselves a real strong chance but we've got the bowlers to do it so I think we can."

McCullum and Vettori came together in the final session of the opening day when New Zealand were struggling at 211 for six and the 28-year-old gloveman said the aim had been to get the team through to the end of day two.

"We were in a pretty dicey sort of position at 211 for six so to be able to combine in that sort of partnership and get our team through to four sessions was something that we aimed for at the start of the game. To manage to do that was very satisfying," McCullum added.

"It would have been nice to have gone on and scored a hundred at my home ground but it wasn't to be.

"I thought it was a pretty good ball that got me out and people are allowed to bowl good balls every now and then.

"I thought that spell was his (Gul's) best of the game. He certainly had a little bit more gas on and managed to get a bit more bounce too."

McCullum said his skipper, who surpassed Shane Warne's record of 2005 runs batting at number eight, was disappointed to have fallen agonisingly short of three figures.

"He's happy with the position we're in and he's obviously happy with the contribution he's made but he's disappointed to miss out on what would have been a brilliant Test hundred," said McCullum, who has also fallen on 99.

"He is certainly leading from the front."