Gary Kirsten, who this week announced his retirement from international cricket after this three-Test tour, will be playing his 100th Test.

If Jacques Kallis hits a century, he will join Don Bradman as the only player in the game to have scored a century in six successive Test matches.

If Pollock secures just one wicket, he will pass retired fast bowler Allan Donald's South African record for most Test wickets. He equalled Donald's 330 with a four-wicket bag in New Zealand's first innings of the drawn first Test in Hamilton.

South Africa captain Graeme Smith said: "We've got some outstanding cricketers who've been around for a long time and really perform well."

"I think as a team, any milestone you achieve or any record you break really builds the confidence in your team."

As in most Tests played in New Zealand, there is much talk surrounding the pitch.

The track for the Hamilton game was a dead, flat pitch which offered little help to the bowlers, except for the 10 percent which badly broke up.

The Eden Park version, which has yet to be used, promises to offer more to the seamers, but both captains were waiting until Thursday morning before making too many judgments.

If it is likely to be more seamer-friendly, then New Zealand would jettison Paul Wiseman from the squad of 13 and choose between fast bowler Ian Butler and medium fast Chris Martin, both fresh from good wicket hauls for New Zealand A against Sri Lanka A, with Butler's extra speed likely to get the nod.

South Africa may replace left-arm slow bowler Paul Adams with the more direct Nicky Boje, or could go all-seam, which would give the under-performing Andre Nel another chance to utilise his bounce and carry, along with David Terbrugge, a similarly accurate medium-fast bowler to Pollock.

Teams:

New Zealand (from) - Stephen Fleming (captain), Mark Richardson, Michael Papps, Scott Styris, Craig McMillan, Chris Cairns, Jacob Oram, Brendon McCullum, Daniel Vettori, Paul Wiseman, Daryl Tuffey, Ian Butler, Chris Martin.

South Africa (from) - Graeme Smith (captain), Herschelle Gibbs, Jacques Rudolph, Jacques Kallis, Gary Kirsten, Neil McKenzie, Mark Boucher, Shaun Pollock, Nicky Boje, Paul Adams, David Terbrugge, Andre Nel, Makhaya Ntini.