Hesson: Taylor one of the greats

Taylor scored his 17th ODI century against South Africa in the second ODI on Wednesday to move past Nathan Astle as New Zealand's all-time leading hundred scorer.

Hesson admitted to being unsure of the middle-order batsman's future in the shortest format of the game though.

"I think he's always talked about as one of the greats," said Hesson, speaking after the match at Christchurch's Hagley Oval.

"His record suggests he should be seen in that light. We are all delighted Ross has the record he deserves."

Hesson feels that the priority for New Zealand over the next 12 months is ODI cricket and he feels Taylor should focus his energy on that format.

"I think Ross always wants to put a big score out there, which is why he's so valuable for us in one-day cricket," said Hesson.

"I've suggested all the way along that Ross is one of the first picked in one-day cricket, as he rightly should be. Yesterday (Wednesday) was another example of how good he is in this format. In the next 12 months we've got loads of one-day cricket and that's our priority."

Hesson praised the batting effort as a whole with the team coping well with conditions which weren't the easiest and putting up a competitive total.

"I've suggested all the way along that Ross is one of the first picked in one-day cricket, as he rightly should be," said the Black Caps coach.

"This was another example of how good he is in this format. In the next 12 months we've got loads of one-day cricket and that's our priority."

New Zealand and South Africa clash again on Saturday, February 25 in the third ODI at the Basin Reserve in Wellington with the series level at 1-1.

Play starts at 03:00 SA time.