Marnus turns to faithful friend to get back in the runs

Acknowledging runs had deserted him through much of the current summer, Marnus Labuschagne turned to a trusted friend to help him find some form and duly came within one freakish catch of a drought-breaking century today.

Labuschagne's 90 in Australia's first innings came amid another struggle by his team against high quality bowling on a helpful pitch, with the Queenslander the only player in the line-up to reach 30.

And to do so, he deployed an old favourite bat that he had not used since Australia's successful ODI World Cup campaign in India last year and which had lain, discarded, among his many tools of the trade throughout the lean stretch of recent months.

Labuschagne is known for his near-obsessive attention to batting detail which extends to attaching names to all his bats in order to readily identify their individual properties and characteristics.

As he recently told The Unplayable Podcast, in the immediate aftermath of last year's Ashes campaign he spent a day at the Cricket Performance Lab at Moorabbin in Melbourne to work out the best weight distribution for his blades.

Initially it was believed the well-worn bat he took into the current Test against New Zealand at Christchurch was the one he has dubbed his 'shed bat' because it was the same bat on which he had performed a bit of impromptu sanding surgery in the curator's shed at The Oval prior to the final Ashes Test.

However, in the wake of his invaluable 90 today that steered Australia to a first innings lead of 94 before NZ rallied in the final session to reach 2-134 in their second innings, he revealed he had deployed a bat that had become his stick of choice during the World Cup triumph.

"This is the World Cup bat, that I used through 90 per cent of the World Cup just gone," Labuschagne said of the blade that sported significant evidence of being as much used as it is loved, with a ring of tape helping to hold it together.

"So I've gone back to it.

"It's always nice to go back to an old faithful."

No credible critic had doubted Labuschagne would quickly find his way out of the mini form slump that had netted five scores of five or less (including a not out) given his undeniable pedigree.

From his 77 innings in what is regarded the toughest specialist batting role in Test cricket (number three), he has scored 3671 runs at an average of 52.44 with 11 centuries and 15 fifties.

Only four other Australia men's players have enjoyed a longer tenure in the pivotal first-drop role – Ricky Ponting (196 innings), David Boon (111), Ian Chappell (91) and Neil Harvey (79).

And among that celebrated quintet, only Ponting (56.27) can boast a better average in that position.

However, the fact he had produced a solitary Test hundred – the invaluable 111 from 270 balls that enabled Australia to draw last year's fourth Ashes Test at Old Trafford and retain the urn – over the past 15 months had weighed on his mind.

Labuschagne admitted the nature of the Hagley Oval pitch when he went to the wicket late on day one and again when he resumed this morning on 45 not out, had likely aided him in adopting a more pro-active mindset given his recent struggles.

"I felt like I probably haven't been at my best for a while," he said at day's end, with the Black Caps 40 runs in the lead.

"Since the SCG (against Pakistan last January) where I got those two sixties in each innings, I've been a bit short of runs and just that big score where I'm really making it count.

"So it's nice to be back in the runs.

"Sometimes a certain wicket forces your hand a little bit, and this was probably one of those wickets.

"It was a wicket where if they bowled well, it was very tough to bat, it was nipping around but you could score the whole time.

"If they missed full you could drive, if they missed short you could cut, you could pull so there was that nice pace in the wicket that was good for scoring.

"Sometimes when you're playing at the Gabba or at Adelaide where it's a bit tennis-bally or slow, it can be tough to play a similar innings.

"There's a few shots you can't always play."

The struggle he had endured to regain that touch only served to underscore his frustration at falling 10 runs shy of the triple-figure milestone, albeit to one of the more memorable diving catches of recent times.

It took a stunning one-handed grab from Black Caps' gully fielder Glenn Phillips to end Labuschagne's stay of almost four hours, leading the Australia batter to throw back his head in disbelief before trudging off the field on the stroke of lunch.

He then saw the pitch flatten out during subsequent sessions, as NZ opener Tom Latham and former skipper Kane Williamson forged a 105-run second-wicket stand that carried the Black Caps into the lead on what Williamson described tonight as "a good wicket"

He also lauded Phillips' fielding effort that came against the backdrop of a series of missed chances by NZ's fielders throughout this Test campaign and the three-match T20I series against Australia that preceded it.

"He's just an incredible athlete," Williamson said of his teammate.

"It was an absolute stunner.

"Marnus played beautifully well and it took something special to get him out, and Glenn's been the man for the job in doing something special for the last wee while."

With the pitch becoming benign and day three traditionally the best day to compile a score at Hagley Oval, the Black Caps will be looking to stretch their lead tomorrow in the hope of pushing for their first win over Australia on home turf since 1993.

But despite his team's recent batting blues, with Australia reaching 300 just once in their past four and a half Tests, Labuschagne believes they can chase down whatever target is set.

Currently, the highest successful fourth innings chase at Hagley is Australia's 3-201 which secured them a seven-wicket win in their only previous game at the venue in 2016.

"As little as possible is always the starting point," Labuschagne said when asked how many his team would feel comfortable pursuing when it comes time to bat.

"The wicket certainly looks nice, it looks tough and a bit of seam there when we're bowling well.

"So it's hard to put a number on it but we're happy top chase whatever they get."

Qantas Tour of New Zealand

Watch all the action from the NZvAUS Tour live and exclusive on Foxtel and Kayo Sports. Click Here to subscribe

February 29 – March 4: Australia won the first Test by 172 runs

March 8-12: Second Test, Christchurch, 9am AEDT

Australia Test squad: Pat Cummins (c), Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Mitchell Marsh, Michael Neser, Matthew Renshaw, Steve Smith (vc), Mitchell Starc

New Zealand Test squad: Tim Southee (c), Tom Blundell (wk), Matt Henry, Scott Kuggeleijn, Tom Latham, Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips, Rachin Ravindra, Mitchell Santner, Ben Sears, Kane Williamson, Will Young.