Shivnarine Chanderpaul is finding life tough as Windies captain

They were beaten by 10 wickets in the Wellington Test to go 2-0 down in the three-match series.

"In their first innings a few chances were not taken, I felt if we had held them it might have been a different outcome to this," he insisted.

"Chances can change a game for you if you take the catches."

Chanderpaul and coach Bennett King defended star batsman Brian Lara, who has made just seven runs from four innings in the series.

"Brian's one of the guys who go out there and can make a big hundred.

"We're going to give him every support and hopefully he's going to come back to form," said Chanderpaul.

"In the four innings he's played, he's got out four different ways. A pull shot, bowled behind his legs, caught in slips and a drive caught at point - it's not something that's consistent.

"He's certainly training hard in the nets and he's very keen to do well," King commented.

Kyle Mills takes a wicket for New Zealand on the final day

West Indies have now lost eight Tests in a row and King said: "Our batting really didn't show the application that was needed.

"We had some potentially very good partnerships that were nipped in the bud by strokeplay or decision-making prior to breaks or just after breaks which I didn't think was appropriate and the players agree."

But he added: "We truly believe this side is capable of much better. We don't believe it's a skills issue, we believe it's an application and personal issue - we've just got to be stronger as cricketers and people.

"We can't afford to go from one match doing one thing well and then the next match doing the same thing and not doing it as well. We have to keep improving, we can't afford to go backwards at all."

They can expect no let-up from New Zealand in the final game, with skipper Stephen Fleming looking for the clean sweep which eluded them in the one-dayers, which they won 4-1.

"Every Test has an identity and we'd like another win next week," he said.

Fleming praised seamers James Franklin, Chris Martin and Kyle Mills, who shared 17 wickets in the match to compensate for the absence of chief strike bowler Shane Bond, who missed the game because of illness.

And he was surprised to pick up the Man of the Match result for his innings of 97 in New Zealand's first innings and six slip catches.

"I was a little bit lucky, but it's nice to contribute and I'm pleased to do so in a winning side.

"It's good to give it to the captain - it keeps things everything happy in the camp. Dan (Vettori) isn't happy - he thinks Frankie should have got it," he joked.

"It was pretty clinical, I thought. In the second innings, the lines and lengths we bowled created real pressure.