Graeme Swann bowled England to the brink of victory against New Zealand in the second and final Test at Headingley.
The off-spinner took four for 61 in 21.4 unchanged overs yesterday, extending his match haul to eight wickets, before bad light ended the fourth day with New Zealand 154 for six.
That left the Black Caps still needing a further 310 runs to reach their victory target of 468.
The most any side has ever made in the fourth innings to win a Test is West Indies' 418 for seven against Australia in Antigua in 2002/03.
And the corresponding record for New Zealand is the 325 for four they posted against Pakistan in Christchurch in 1993/94.
It seemed only the rain on Tuesday's final day could now deny England victory and a 2-0 series win.
In that case they might rue both captain Alastair Cook's decision not to enforce the follow-on on Sunday and indeed bat on after lunch yesterday in a match where the whole of Friday's first day was washed out without a ball bowled.
For New Zealand, only former captain Ross Taylor, with a stylish 70, offered much in the way of significant resistance yesterday before he was yorked by Swann to leave New Zealand 154 for six.
In their first innings, New Zealand collapsed to 174 all out -- although this was an improvement on the 68 they managed in the second innings of their 170-run first Test defeat at Lord's.
Stuart Broad, who took a Test-best seven for 44 at Lord's, removed Peter Fulton for five on Monday after he fended a rising delivery to Ian Bell in the gully.
