Depleted New Zealand face red-hot England as 'Bazball' takes centre stage

A weakened New Zealand side have the unenviable task of trying to counter England's bold new style of playing Test cricket when a two-match series begins in Mount Maunganui on Thursday.

The day-night Test will kick off the tour in which Ben Stokes's team will look to conquer another overseas territory with their now famous "Bazball" brand of cricket.

England have won nine of 10 Tests since New Zealander Brendon McCullum took charge as head coach, with the Black Caps becoming the first to suffer under the new style of all-out attacking cricket last year.

Then, England swept the home series 3-0 against New Zealand in June as the team chased down more than 275 in the final innings of all three Tests. They did one better against India in a one-off Test, chasing down 377 with ease. They then secured a 2-1 series win against South Africa.

The icing on the cake for Stokes' team was their historic 3-0 series win in Pakistan last year, which capped a stunning turnaround for a side that had earlier won just one out of 17 Tests.

He's so good @root66 only needs half a bat