Lynn McConnell in Wellington
Next year's Cricket World Cup is the main consideration for New Zealand's cricket selectors as they plot the improvement requirements needed to make the side consistently competitive.
That starts in Wellington on Saturday as the harsh realities of international one-day cricket dished out by the Australians during the Chappell-Hadlee Trophy series are absorbed.
Acknowledging that all on the New Zealand international scene is not exactly as it might, coach Mark Greatbatch said that in order to make the most of the three winter tours this year to Asian countries, the sides may be extended by two in order to incorporate a development aspect.
"A full belief that when you get into position to beat a really good side is that we have to have the courage to keep going and we're just short of that at the moment," he said.
There was the danger of over-analysis and all it could have taken to potentially win two of the lost games earlier in the week was a partnership of 50 or so runs.
The side was moving towards that realisation but was not there yet and it was about trying to do it consistently, he said.
Greatbatch said the likes of Ross Taylor was one who appreciated that, despite struggling against the Australians on Thursday, needed to rotate the strike more.
"He had two goes, he got 60 and 70 and probably one of those he should have converted into a hundred and that is what he is trying to do...He's still learning, he's also a power player, a dynamic player and the risk factor does go up when you play like that," he said.
With 22 One-Day Internationals before the next World Cup New Zealand would be attempting to find a greater consistency of success and a method which had key people in positions to do the job for the side.
Building a side around the core players who had their own style, the Taylors, Brendon McCullums and Daniel Vettoris would be the goal.
That would be having a batting unit that understood what their best game was and putting them in an area that actually exploited it.
"There's no doubt about it, we've got to be more ruthless. Our top-order are good players, dynamic players, but when they get into position where they're dominating they want to finish the game."
Ricky Ponting had shown on Thursday that he knew how to get maximum consistently from the luck that came his way while Michael Hussey batted consistently for Australia through the middle-order and that was the sort of goal the New Zealanders needed.
Meanwhile, Greatbatch said there was every chance Northern Districts' emerging star Kane Williamson would be on one of New Zealand's winter tours this year to make his international debut.
He had been on an Emerging Players tour last winter and had experienced the first hiccup of his career in the first part of this season.
But that had been a good learning experience for him and prepared him for the mental contest that lay ahead when he stepped up to international play.