England batsman Eoin Morgan remains acutely aware of the threat posed by New Zealand batsman Ross Taylor ahead of this month's three-match Twenty20 International series.

Taylor has not played international cricket since December 2012, when he lost the ODI and T20I captaincy to the veteran Brendon McCullum, later turned down the opportunity to lead the Test side against South Africa - and withdrew from the squad as a specialist batsman.

Hesson had apparently questioned the leadership of Taylor in the buildup to that tour, with McCullum handed the reins in all three formats amid a contentious period, which ultimately culminated in T20I and Test series defeats followed by ODI series triumph.

"Ross is a big danger, a very successful ODI and Twenty20 cricketer and someone we look to as a possible threat in this series," insisted Morgan, who has returned to the vice-captaincy following skipper Stuart Broad's return from injury.

England met a New Zealand XI in two warmup matches at the Cobham Oval in Whangarei this week, winning the first on the back of wicketkeeper-batsman Jos Buttler's half-century and Broad's hat-trick - and losing the second despite another half-century from Buttler and Morgan's unbeaten 51-run blitz.

"All our preparation matters and having a great test in Whangarei was brilliant for us. Often you go into warmup games and dominate, and we are looking forward to the T20Is now," added Morgan.

The first T20I gets underway at Eden Park in Auckland on Saturday. Fixtures two and three will be hosted by Seddon Park in Hamilton and Westpac Stadium in Wellington on Tuesday and Friday respectively.