CHRISTCHURCH: Half centuries from Ross Taylor and Tom Latham on Saturday lifted New Zealand to 192-4 at tea on day two of an evenly balanced second test against Bangladesh.
Replying to Bangladesh's first innings of 289, New Zealand still trailed by 97 runs with Henry Nicholls 19 not out and Mitchell Santner 5.
Ross Taylor made 77 and passed 6,000 runs in his test career, becoming the third New Zealand player to pass the milestone after Stephen Fleming and Brendon McCullum.
Tom Latham scored 68, giving him six half-centuries in seven tests, becoming the first New Zealander to make so many in that span.
The pair shared a 106-run partnership for the third wicket which played New Zealand into a strong position after lunch but their loss in quick succession left the match closely poised at tea.
Latham batted superbly to support the New Zealand innings through the opening session on Saturday on which the Bangladesh seamers often had the upper hand. He lost his opening partner, Jeet Raval, for 16 and captain Kane Williamson (2) only two balls later at 47-2.
Taylor had nervous moments at the start of his innings and was slow to score at first but the pair saw New Zealand to lunch at 70-2.
New Zealand then reclaimed some of the initiative from the Bangladesh bowlers through the first half of the second session as Taylor especially stepped up his scoring pace.
But Latham was out with the total on 153 when he tried to cut a short ball from Taskin Ahmed which was too close and which he top-edged to wicketkeeper Nurul Hasan.
Taylor had a life at 75 when he hoisted a ball to Kamrul Islam at square leg but which the fielder, making ground too late, couldn't hold as he dived.
The reprieve was a brief one: two runs later Taylor played a ball from off-spinner Mehedi Hasan to the replacement fielder Taijul Islam at midwicket. Taylor was at first judged not out because of a suspected bump ball but replays made clear he had hit the ball directly to the fielder.