It was the best day of the tour and it produced the best innings, 156 to Michael Vaughan, but it also produced another middle order collapse. However, right on the drinks break Warren Wisneski picked up the wicket of James Foster for three to leave England 333/9.

Earlier, the new ball provided further success for Canterbury.

The last ball of the first over with the new ball, bowled by Wisneski, saw Usman Afzaal chip a chance to Wade Cornelius that was easily taken to end his innings on 19, off 56 balls. England were 329/6.

Wisneski had a horror morning session when unable to get his rhythm and direction in alignment and suffered an affliction of no balling. However, his return with the new ball resulted in a far better demonstration of his worth as he took two wickets for six runs kin 3.1 overs.

Chris Martin also found better touch, as if in celebration of his recall to the New Zealand team which was announced during the drinks break. His first three overs with the new ball cost only four runs.

But it is clear with the pitch starting to wear that Canterbury face a battle to avoid defeat on the third day tomorrow.

After moving along in relative comfort in the idyllic conditions, the bottom dropped out once century maker Michael Vaughan was dismissed with the score on 278.

Vaughan's departure, caught well by Harris running back at mid-wicket from Paul Wiseman's bowling, resulted in such a flurry of activity that three wickets fell in the space of six runs.

Vaughan's innings should have been a Test clincher for him. He scored 156 off 198 balls and hit 27 fours. He shared the second wicket stand of 207 with Nasser Hussain.

Hussain was next man out, having earlier posted his half century off 80 balls. He played a ball to square leg and set off for a sharp single, but Gary Stead pounced on the ball and fired a superb throw to the bowler's end where his direct hit caught Hussain just short and he left with 69 scored off 121 balls, and including 11 fours.

Mark Ramprakash entered knowing his Test chances were drastically reduced as a result of Vaughan's innings, so current opinion would have have it. His cause was not helped when Wiseman had him turning a ball which was well taken by Robbie Frew fielding under the helmet at short leg.

Three wickets fell for six runs in the space of 15 balls. England were 284/4.

Two runs later Andrew Flintoff lobbed a full toss back to bowler Chris Harris who held the easy chance to leave England grasping for a hold, having lost four wickets for eight runs off 33 balls.

Paul Wiseman took two for 52 off 12 overs and Chris Harris one for 42 off 16 overs.

When Christchurch's planners laid out their model city on the Canterbury plains in the middle of the 19th Century they created this vast area of central city green space with the playing of sports, and cricket especially, in mind and it was appropriate that on this celebration of 125 years of Canterbury Cricket that someone should be taking advantage of the conditions.

Sadly for Canterbury it was England that was making the most of it and Michael Vaughan and Nasser Hussain especially.

By the mid-session drinks break, England were 256/1, Vaughan on 144 not out and Hussain was 60 not out, having added 80 runs in the hour.

Vaughan, in competition with Mark Ramprakash and Craig White for a Test spot, made the most of his chance for a good long spell in the middle to build on the impression he created when producing England's best one-day batting performance in his only opportunity at Auckland.

He went to lunch on 93 but suffered no concerns as he moved through to the 22nd century of his first-class career soon after the resumption.

His century came up off 135 balls and included 15 fours.

The pair brought up the 200 off 273 balls and Hussain's 50 was scored off 80 balls, which included eight fours.

Hussain had started very shakily but was showing more confidence in the latter stages of the innings.

There were few, if any, terrors in the pitch for the pair and Canterbury captain Gary Stead was forced to switch his bowlers around regularly to at least offer the variety of delivery as a means by which batsmen could make a mistake.

But batsmen everywhere know a belter when they see one, and this was cash in time for aggregates and averages.

They added 148 runs in 29 overs during the first session of the day.

At the lunch break on a gloriously fine day, possibly the best on the tour, England were 176/1, in response to Canterbury's 212/8.

Michael Vaughan was 93 not out off 124 balls, and produced the best innings by any English batsman in the two first-class matches used as preparation for the Tests.

He scored his half century off 60 balls, during an especially belligerent first hour in which 73 runs were added in the hour.

He did have a life on 82 when a stumping chance from off-spinner Paul Wiseman was missed by wicket-keeper Gareth Hopkins.

Nasser Hussain, by comparison, was very shaky. When the second wicket stand reached 100 just before the lunch break, he had contributed only 31. He was 32 not out at lunch.

Canterbury captain Gary Stead used both his slow bowlers Chris Harris and Wiseman, but they were incapable of stopping the steady accumulation of runs. He brought Warren Wisneski back from the northern end after a disappointing spell earlier in the day at the southern end, but he was suffereing real problems with his direction.

Harris took none for 18 off his five overs while Wiseman had none for 27 off five overs.

Vaughan mounted an all-out assault against Canterbury speed men Chris Martin and Wade Cornelius. He took 16 runs off Cornelius' third over, including four boundaries in five balls, spread to various parts of the ground.

He brought up his 50 off 60 balls, including 10 fours with an edged ball through the vacant third slip region.

There were few terrors in the pitch for England and Vaughan took full toll, unleashing some classy shots and helping England add 100 in 93 minutes. In the first hour 73 runs were scored in 13 overs as Vaughan reached 53 with Nasser Hussain one. England were 101/1.

Hussain looked to be trying to work the demons of one-day cricket out of his system after his break during the Otago game. He courted with instant death several times with shots of high risk.

Warren Wisneski ran into problems with his run-up and in his seventh over, and last after the resumption on the second day, cost him four no-balls. He had 35 runs off his seven overs to that stage of the innings.

His replacement at the bowling crease Wade Cornelius had 11 runs taken off his first over, but gained the wicket of Mark Butcher caught off a high edge by Chris Harris running around to gully to send him on his way for 39, scored off 56 b alls.

England were 71/1 at that stage.

Martin bowled through to complete 10 overs before being replaced at the crease by Chris Harris. He had 37 for no wickets and in today's bowling, again watched closely by national selectors, Sir Richard Hadlee and Ross Dykes, he bowled six overs for 27 runs.