It is a measure of the growing stature of the New Zealand Test side that they finished the year 2001 as the best performed of all the Test nations.

Yes, their three Test victories included two over the hapless Bangladesh side, but the effort against Australia highlighted just how far this side has come in 12 months.

There is no escaping the fact that the New Zealand team of the moment is riding an escalator towards the top of the performance graph rather than hovering near the bottom not sure of which foot to put on the escalator first.

There is still a significant amount of work to be done to realise the full potential of the side but 2001 provided the first evidence that things are starting to fall into place in the New Zealand cricket mechanism.

First and foremost there is a competitive core of players attempting to gain the selectors' favour. That is the healthiest thing of all.

There is sufficient skill in the bowling armoury for New Zealand to avoid being in the position it was in last summer when an injury epidemic broke out.

The emergence of a genuine fast bowler in Shane Bond adds bite to the attack and if he can be sufficiently well handled during what is going to be a hectic 2002, then New Zealand should have every chance of being the best-performed Test nation at the same time next year.

That is not to forget that two long standing problems have not gone away. The opening batting position, with a permanent partner for Mark Richardson has not been resolved, although it has to be hoped his liaison with Matt Horne becomes a permanent one.

And a back-up for spinner for Daniel Vettori appears no closer. Vettori's skills, and his continuing development, are one of the most exciting things about the New Zealand team at the moment and while his skill is almost freakish, there is a dire need for another spinner to emerge.

It should not be forgotten either that the manner of New Zealand's one defeat this year, by Pakistan at Eden Park, was the result of the most miserable batting performance in living memory with nine wickets falling for 26 runs to result in a 299-run loss.

It was the lowest low of the year and after a redemption on the flattest track in the world game at Jade Stadium in the second Test, New Zealand found its finest touch at Hamilton where it achieved its finest win, by result alone, and inflicted the worst defeat in Pakistan's history.

The loss of the return tour to Pakistan due to the aftermatch of the September 11 terrorist attacks in the United States was unfortunate, and with rising tension between Pakistan and India, it is increasingly likely that this series when rescheduled for next year, may well be played on neutral territory.

However, the lack of a tour to Pakistan did mean that New Zealand was in a fresh state when arriving in Australia. There was a great deal of hope that a revitalised team, with Chris Cairns, Dion Nash and Daniel Vettori back in harness might prove a match for the world champions.

Fickle Australian weather meant the issue remained unresolved. Australians will claim the weather robbed them of victory chances in the first two Tests while New Zealand will have long memories over the umpiring decisions of Zimbabwe's Ian Robinson who had a Test to forget in Perth.

Whatever, the series provided some outstanding cricket from both sides. Stephen Fleming's stature as a captain rose, the rankings of his players rose, and the appreciation of the New Zealand public of their side rose.

It was a welcome acknowledgement of the side's development and when the home series against Bangladesh was so quickly wrapped up, the scene was set for New Zealand to look forward to a home series with England that threatens to be a great example of the attacking attitude of the home team and the biggest boost for cricket in this country since the 1992 World Cup.

Tests:

Team records:

Team                Tests      Won     Lost    Drawn     Tied      Win %
New Zealand             8        3        1        4        0      75.00
Australia              14        8        3        3        0      72.72
South Africa           13        6        3        4        0      66.66
Sri Lanka              13        8        5        0        0      61.54
Pakistan                6        3        2        1        0      60.00
India                  13        5        5        3        0      50.00
Zimbabwe               11        4        4        3        0      50.00
England                13        4        7        2        0      36.36
West Indies            11        2        6        3        0      25.00
Bangladesh              8        0        7        1        0       0.00

Name                Mat    I  NO  Runs   HS     Ave     SR 100 50   Ct St
MH Richardson         8   12   1   663  143   60.27  46.04   2  4    7  -
CD McMillan           8   11   1   494  106   49.40  61.13   1  4    4  -
SP Fleming            8   11   1   476  105   47.60  47.83   1  5    9  -
MS Sinclair           8   12   3   431  204*  47.88  44.02   1  1    8  -
NJ Astle              7    9   1   334  156*  41.75  52.35   1  1    3  -

Name                Mat    O      M     R   W    Ave  Best   5 10    SR  Econ
CL Cairns             5  158.2   29   614  23  26.69  7-53   2  -  41.3  3.87
DL Vettori            5  197.2   45   577  19  30.36  6-87   2  -  62.3  2.92
DR Tuffey             4  144.5   37   442  16  27.62  4-39   -  -  54.3  3.05
CS Martin             5  150     26   607  15  40.46  4-52   -  -  60.0  4.04
SE Bond               4  123.1   20   439  14  31.35  4-47   -  -  52.7  3.56

Team                 ODIs      Won     Lost     Tied       NR      Win %
Australia              21       18        3        0        0      85.71
South Africa           21       17        4        0        0      80.95
Pakistan               21       14        7        0        0      66.66
Sri Lanka              34       22       12        0        0      64.70
India                  24       12       12        0        0      50.00
West Indies            30       13       17        0        0      43.33
England                14        5        9        0        0      35.71
New Zealand            23        8       15        0        0      34.78
Zimbabwe               37       10       27        0        0      27.02
Kenya                   9        1        8        0        0      11.11
Bangladesh              6        0        6        0        0       0.00

Name                Mat    I  NO  Runs   HS     Ave     SR 100 50   Ct St
NJ Astle             18   18   1   735  119   43.23  75.07   3  3   10  -
CD McMillan          23   22   3   666  104*  35.05  83.66   1  3    4  -
MS Sinclair          16   16   1   509  118*  33.93  64.59   2  2    4  -
SP Fleming           17   17   1   457   67   28.56  67.50   -  4    9  -
CZ Harris            23   21   6   439   56   29.26  61.31   -  2   12  -

Name                Mat    O      M     R   W    Ave  Best  4w 5w    SR  Econ
DR Tuffey            16  116      9   511  24  21.29  4-24   1  -  29.0  4.40
CZ Harris            23  176.5    7   714  20  35.70  3-23   -  -  53.0  4.03
CD McMillan          23   87      4   471  17  27.70  3-20   -  -  30.7  5.41
JEC Franklin         14  107      5   525  14  37.50  3-44   -  -  45.8  4.90
DL Vettori           16  149.1    8   613  14  43.78  3-21   -  -  63.9  4.10