Chasing New Zealand’s first innings total of 503, India were 10 for 3 at one stage before recovering to 130 for 4 at stumps on day-two. The hosts too had gotten off to a wobbly start, losing their first three wickets for 30 runs, before Brendon McCullum and Kane Williamson revived their innings. Indian opener, Murali Vijay said it was the new ball that was causing problems to batsmen from both sides. "If you see both the innings so far, the new ball did the trick for bowlers in both teams,” Vijay said. “More than the pitch or conditions, it is the new ball. Initially it tends to swing a bit more and once it gets older, it becomes much easier to bat. That is what is happening in the middle. Hopefully, Rohit (Sharma) and Ajinkya (Rahane) can build a big partnership.” Despite the ongoing rescuing act by Rohit Sharma (67*) and Ajinkya Rahane (23*), India still need 304 more runs to avoid the follow-on – a task that seems herculean given India’s top four batsmen are back in the hut. Vijay stuck in for a steady 26 before a straightening delivery just outside the off-stump struck the top of his stump. The opener said he was disappointed he couldn’t hang in there despite feeling good about his form. "I just need to get it off my system,” he said. “I think I batted well, I was feeling good inside. I just wanted to have a partnership with Rohit. That was the plan. But it couldn't go my way. On the whole, Vijay felt the Indian batsmen could have put in a better effort. "The New Zealand bowlers were obviously swinging the ball. But we could have played much better. Maybe in the next innings, we can do that. The pitch is still very good for batting. So I am hoping we can go close to their score and put pressure on them.”