New Zealand’s cricketers will want to repeat their first day efforts and run through the South African top order on Friday if they hope to cause an upset win over the visitors.

Resuming on 9-243 – a lead of five runs on South Africa’s first innings of 238 – there is slim chance the final pair of Chris Martin, yet to score, and Trent Boult, on eight, will add significantly to the lead.

South Africa should be batting again early on the third day, and their impressive batting line up will want to pile on a mountain of runs, despite being dismissed cheaply first up.

The South Africans need to win the series 3-0 to overtake England as the top-ranked Test-playing nation, but the first Test, at Dunedin’s University Oval, is evenly poised, and the eighth-ranked hosts have shown a lot more battle than critics forecast.

Both sides are predicting the pitch will get lower and slower, and therefore more difficult to bat on, as the match progresses.

South African pace bowler Morne Morkel backed his batsmen to set a sizeable total and his side’s Pakistan-born legspinner Imran Tahir to be dangerous on a degenerating pitch.