Tim Southee retains place in squad but will he play in Test swansong?

Whether veteran Black Caps bowler Tim Southee will be named in the side for what is meant to be his farewell Test, remains to be seen.

The third test against England in Hamilton starts on Saturday. England have an unassailable 2-nil lead in the three test series after comprehensive wins in Christchurch and Wellington.

New Zealand opener Devon Conway will miss the third Test as he awaits the birth of his first child, otherwise the 13 player squad remains the same.

Black Caps coach Gary Stead said they will have to take a closer look at the Hamilton pitch before decisions are made on the eleven.

Last month, Southee announced that he would retire from Test cricket at the conclusion of England's tour of New Zealand, on his home ground in Hamilton.

But the seam bowler, who has had a 17-year international career, has been struggling for form recently.

"Like any head coach you've got to sit down and have hard conversations with players at times and Tim Southee has made the decision that it's on his terms when he wants to go out of the game as well."

Stead avoided questions around whether Southee's current form warranted his retirement being on his terms.

"England are playing very good cricket against us and if you look at the performances in this last test match I think all bowlers went somewhere between five and six an over.

"When someone like Harry Brook comes in and does what he does it's difficult for anyone in the world and that's the challenge that's in front of us."

But Stead acknowledged that the 35-year-old was not the bowler he once was.

"I think he's first to say that he's not what he was five or six years ago but people do fluctuate through form as well."

Is there a risk that Southee will not be named in the side in what is meant to be his farewell Test?

"He's in the 13 and we'll make that decision when we get up there. It's going to be an exciting game still, there's a lot on it for us, it's a chance for us to go out there and prove to our fans out there that we can still beat England."

Conway will remain in Wellington to await the birth of his first child.

Conway's place in the side was under threat, with a top score of just 22 in his last seven test innings.

He scored 76 in the first innings of the second test against India in Pune but followed that up with scores of 17, 4, 22. Against England he has scored just 2,8, 11 and 0.

Will Young, the player of the series for the Black Caps in their historic 3-nil test series win over India in India last month, will likely replace Conway at the top of the order while Auckland's Mark Chapman has been added to the wider squad.

"Family comes first in this environment and we're all really excited for Dev and his wife Kim to welcome their first child," Stead said.

Stead said Conway and his wife were expecting their first child this week.

"I'm not a midwife ...but I think things are possibly a little bit earlier than expected but it's out of our control now and we've had those discussions with Devon and think the best thing for him is to be at home right now."

Stead is confident the Black Caps batters could turn around their form quickly.

"You look at a Tom Blundell, I know there's been knives out for him recently but it shows what he can do and shows his class."

The Black Caps were on an incredible high a month ago after their historic Test series clean sweep in India. So what have the heavy losses to England in the first two Tests done to morale?

"It's only a month ago that we did something very very special in India, I think it's the fickleness of international sport at times.

"We are searching for the answers against a very very good England side ...there's no dead rubber for us, every Test match is important.

"There's no one more disappointed than the group of staff and players that are in the changing room."

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