New Zealand v England preview

James Anderson has pronounced himself fit from his Wellington exertions as England gear up for their final-Test decider against New Zealand.

There were concerns at the Basin Reserve, where Anderson bowled the majority of his 37 overs into a fierce wind, that niggling discomfort in his heel and back were taking their toll.

But after that rain-affected stalemate, and the one before it in the first Test at Dunedin, England's senior fast bowler is ready for one last push on Thursday as the tourists bid for a clean sweep of series victories here in all formats.

"I feel okay," he said.

"The rain probably helped in the end, getting an extra day off.

"It gave my body an extra bit of rest. So I hope, come Friday, my body will be ready to go five days again."

England should therefore be able to pick an unchanged team - with spinner Monty Panesar's place the only possible variable, barring last-minute injury.

Panesar could take just one wicket in Wellington, and England's options are a return for off-spinner James Tredwell - whose solitary Test to date came in Bangladesh three years ago - or an all-pace attack, which would probably mean a debut for Chris Woakes.

The likelihood is that they will stick with the same formula, however - for a match which will be played on a drop-in pitch, and determine the success or otherwise of this tour.

"It's obviously a decider," Anderson said.

"We want to win the series, and will be looking at it as a very important game.

"There's a lot of pressure around the game, and we'll have to play very well to compete with a New Zealand team."

Anderson, five wickets short of becoming just the fourth Englishman to take 300 in Tests, has mustered only seven in this series to date.

New Zealand batsman Dean Brownlie, however, does not subscribe to the theory that the opposition's premier seamer has been short of his best.

"He got me out in both games, so I wouldn't say that.

"He's the sort of the bowler who has a few tricks up his sleeve - so even if he isn't 100 per cent, he'll still have the ball swinging and seaming."

Unresponsive pitches in both Dunedin and Wellington have made life difficult for bowlers on both sides, with frustrations inevitable especially for someone with the height and natural bounce of England's Steven Finn.

But Brownlie added: "Most of their bowlers have played a lot of Test cricket and gone through patches where things haven't gone their way.

"I'm sure it's just another hurdle for them.

"They might be a bit down or whatever, but we know they will come back strong.

"We saw that in the T20s and ODIs, in games three when they really stood up."