England thwarted by the rain

England

England's bid to claim victory over New Zealand in the second Test was thwarted, after the fifth and final day's play was washed out without a ball bowled at the Basin Reserve in Wellington on Monday.

England's bid to claim victory over New Zealand in the second Test was thwarted, after the fifth and final day's play was washed out without a ball bowled at the Basin Reserve in Wellington on Monday.

All out for 465 on the back of centuries from opener Nick Compton and the right-handed Jonathan Trott, the tourists had reduced the hosts to 254 all out – thanks largely to seamer Stuart Broad's six-wicket haul.

Visiting skipper Alastair Cook's decision to enforce the follow-on later saw the Black Caps climb to 162 for two, with an unbroken stand of 81 between the talented Kane Williamson and former skipper Ross Taylor stifling England's determination.

The inclement weather strewn across the bulk of day four, too, hindered Cook and company's push for a vital one-nil lead in the three-match series. Day five brought little hope of a resumption in play, as the remnants of Cyclone Sandra left umpires Rod Tucker and Asad Rauf to draw the final curtains on the fixture at 14:00 local time (01:00 GMT).

Back-to-back rain-affected draws in Dunedin and Wellington have rendered the third and final match at Eden Park in Auckland, which gets underway on Friday, a series decider between teams six positions apart in the International Cricket Council's Test rankings.

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