Test cricket huh? Always one to serve up a bit of weirdness, test cricket is about battling it out for the whole day, the whole test, the whole series which, I'm happy to say is what this Black Caps side are doing.

It was a weird day because Pakistan looked in total control and at ease for large portions of the day. Younis Khan was again like Gandalf with his bat, fighting off anything the Black Cap bowlers tried to do and well, he batted like a world class batsmen. But despite being world class, Younis fell to a Jimmy Neesham shitter on 72 ... such is cricket.

There were two encouraging signs with the first being the work of Tim Southee and Trent Boult with the second new ball. Who knows why the 2nd prime nut decided to move around a bit more, but it did and having Boult and Southee up your sleeve to make the most of it is huge. It's been a tough series for these two lads, but seeing them get a few rewards in Misbah ul Haq (28) and Asad Shafiq (44) has given the Kiwis a real sniffy sniff.

The other encouraging sign is the spirit of this side. I said after the first test that the way the Kiwis crumbled was the worst bit, but so far in the 2nd test they're putting a genuine desire to win on display. When Pakistan looked to be cruising, B-Mac kept switching things up as he has done many times in the past - bowlers, field positions etc this is a captain who doesn't mess around. Then the bowlers kept trying things, over the wicket, around the wicket, target this, target that just doing whatever it takes to stay in the contest. Use Ish Sodhi as a metaphor for the Black Caps - he's always going to go for a few, but he's always eagerly anticipating the next delivery as another chance. That's the general mindset of the Black Caps, which in itself makes me happy as a fan.

The game is now interestingly poised. First things first, bowl Pakistan out. If they can do that before lunch with some sort of lead then they can look to bat the rest of the day and declare late in the day or early on day 5. If the stars don't quite align, just keep on battling for a draw.