Cricket-New Zealand v England test series

FIXTURES (start times GMT):

1st test - March 22-26, Auckland (0100)

2nd test - March 30-April 3, Christchurch (2200)

NEW ZEALAND

Test ranking: 4

Captain: Kane Williamson

Coach: Mike Hesson

Squad: Jeet Raval, Tom Latham, Kane Williamson, Ross Taylor, Henry Nicholls, Colin de Grandhomme, BJ Watling, Todd Astle, Tim Southee, Matt Henry, Neil Wagner, Trent Boult, Martin Guptill

Recent form:

Beat West Indies 2-0 at home

Lost South Africa 1-0 at home

Beat Bangladesh 2-0 at home

Beat Pakistan 2-0 at home

Lost India 3-0 away

ENGLAND

Test ranking: 5

Captain: Joe Root

Coach: Trevor Bayliss

Squad: Alastair Cook, Mark Stoneman, James Vince, Joe Root, Dawid Malan, Ben Stokes, Jonny Bairstow, Moeen Ali, Chris Woakes, Stuart Broad, Mark Wood, Jimmy Anderson, Liam Livingstone, Mason Crane, Craig Overton, Ben Foakes

Recent form:

Lost Australia 4-0 away

Beat West Indies 2-1 at home

Beat South Africa 3-1 at home

Lost India 4-0 away

Drew Bangladesh 1-1 away

HEAD TO HEAD

Total: 101

New Zealand wins: 9

England wins: 48

Draws: 44

IN NEW ZEALAND

Total: 47

New Zealand wins: 4

England wins: 18

Draws: 25

LAST 10 TESTS

2015 - New Zealand won by 199 runs Leeds

2015 - England won by 124 runs London

2013 - England won by 247 runs Leeds

2013 - England won by 170 runs London

2013 - Match drawn Auckland

2013 - Match drawn Wellington

2013 - Match drawn Dunedin

2008 - England won by innings & nine runs Nottingham

2008 - England won by six wickets Manchester

2008 - Match drawn London

FIRST TEST

Eden Park, Auckland - Capacity: 50,000

Originally a drained swamp, it became a sports ground in 1900 and has been the home of Auckland cricket since 1910 and Auckland rugby since 1925.

It is also the site of the infamous flour bomb rugby test between South Africa and New Zealand in 1981 and where the hosts collapsed to the lowest test cricket score of 26 against England in 1955.

While a dual-purpose venue it has become more of a specialised rugby ground with the construction of stands for the 2011 Rugby World Cup creating a strange configuration for cricket with short boundaries behind square and straight down the ground.

Has fallen out of favour as a test venue in recent years, having hosted just 10 matches in the last 20 years and two in the last decade, with New Zealand Cricket preferring the boutique-sized grounds in Hamilton, Dunedin, Christchurch and Wellington.

Its floodlights and large capacity, however, make it ideal as the venue for the country's first day-night test.

MATCH OFFICIALS

Umpires: Bruce Oxenford, Paul Reiffel (both Australia)

TV official: Marais Erasmus (South Africa)

Fourth official: Wayne Knights (New Zealand)

Match referee: Richie Richardson (West Indies)

HISTORY

Previous New Zealand v England tests in Auckland

Matches: 16

New Zealand wins: 1

England wins: 4

Draws: 11

Recent results:

2013 - Match drawn

2002 - New Zealand won by 78 runs

1997 - Match drawn

1992 - England won by 162 runs

1988 - Match drawn (Compiled by Greg Stutchbury; Editing by Amlan Chakraborty)