New Zealand won the toss and elected to bowl against England in their opening one-day international at Seddon Park on Sunday.
"Chasing on this ground can be beneficial," said New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum.
New Zealand's last ODI victory at Seddon Park was five years ago when they beat England by 10 wickets as McCullum and Jesse Ryder took just over 18 overs to pass the target of 165.
England, who beat New Zealand 2-1 in the just completed Twenty20 series, have bolstered their side with the arrival of Alastair Cook, Ian Bell, Jonathan Trott, Graeme Swann and James Anderson.
New Zealand, whose only success in the Twenty20 series was on the same Seddon Park ground, have spruced up their squad with the addition of batsmen BJ Watling and Kane Williamson as well as medium-fast bowler Kyle Mills.
Teams
New Zealand: Martin Guptill, BJ Watling (wk), Kane Williamson, Ross Taylor, Brendon McCullum (captain), Grant Elliott, James Franklin, Andrew Ellis, Nathan McCullum, Kyle Mills, Mitchell McClenaghan
England: Alastair Cook (captain), Ian Bell, Jonathan Trott, Joe Root, Eoin Morgan, Jos Buttler (wk), Chris Woakes, Stuart Broad, Graeme Swann, James Anderson, Steven Finn.