New Zealand pulled off a remarkable one-run win over England on Tuesday as lion-hearted pacer Neil Wagner’s heroics saw the hosts become just the fourth side in Test history to win a match after being asked to follow on.

Wagner took four wickets and two crucial catches at Wellington’s Basin Reserve, where the hosts recorded only the second one-run victory in Test cricket following West Indies’ famous 1993 win in Adelaide.

New Zealand had Wagner to thank for one of the most dramatic outcomes ever seen in the game as he came back from a trouncing by England’s batsmen to take the last wicket of James Anderson at the end of a manic Day V.

Having set England 258 to win, New Zealand’s hopes had faded after lunch as Joe Root (95) and captain Ben Stokes (33) produced a 121-run stand to cut the deficit to 57 runs with five wickets in hand on a sunny Tuesday afternoon.

Enter Wagner, who had bled more than eight runs an over in the third innings when England romped to a 267-run win in the series-opener at Mount Maunganui.

He had both Root and Stokes out slogging in Wellington then nervelessly held catches in the deep to help remove Stuart Broad (11) and Ben Foakes for 35. Foakes’s wicket left tailenders Jack Leach and Anderson needing seven runs for victory, and Anderson smacked a boundary off Wagner to trim the target to two runs.

Wagner came again and had Anderson caught down the leg side for four to trigger jubilation among his teammates and the home fans in the crowd.

“It’s a special one this and we’ll celebrate it well,” said Wagner, who finished with 4/62 in the fourth innings.

“It’s an amazing achievement and obviously everybody contributed, so hats off to everyone. That’s what this team’s about, just keep playing. We keep loving to fight for each other.”

With the series ending 1-1, the hosts preserved their unbeaten record at home dating back to 2017.