After suffering their biggest ODI series defeat against India at home, New Zealand bounced back to clean sweep Bangladesh in the run up to 2019 ICC World Cup.
The Black Caps registered an 88-run win in the third ODI in Dunedin on Wednesday with Tim Southee snaring a six-wicket haul and Ross Taylor tearing up the record books, for a 3-0 series whitewash.
Placed third in the ICC ODI rankings, Kiwis first posted 330/6 then returned to dismiss 242 inside 48 overs despite Sabbir Rahman hitting a good looking ton, 102 off 110 balls.
Rahman's gallant maiden ODI century saved Bangladesh from total humiliation after they lost three wickets with just two runs on the board.
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The tourists won the crucial toss, but skipper Mashrafe Mortaza seemed to have read it wrong as he sent the Black Caps into bat at University Oval.
It was final New Zealand outing before the Cricket World Cup and players were desperate to impress coach Gary Stead even though the fixture was a dead rubber. New Zealand open their World Cup campaign against Sri Lanka on June 1 in Cardiff.
Pacer Southee, overlooked in New Zealand's past six ODIs, took six for 65 to guarantee himself almost certainly a berth at the tournament.
Henry Nicholls looks to have secured an opening batting slot with a sparkling 64, but out-of-form rival Colin Munro was dismissed for eight.
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"Henry's shown he's a versatile player for us... he's a key component of our batting line-up," Black Caps coach Gary Stead said, adding that Munro might make the trip as injury cover.
Meanwhile, Taylor became New Zealand's highest-scoring ODI batsman as his 69 off 81 balls took him past 8,000 runs in th 50-over format.
His 47th ODI half-century saw Taylor reach 8,026 runs, overtaking Stephen Fleming's previous record of 8,007.
The 34-year-old, who made his ODI debut in 2006, reached his milestone in 203 innings with a superb average of 48.34.
'Got a few years left'
"I definitely would have taken that when I played my first match donkey's years ago," he said.
"If you play long enough I guess these records come along but it's nice to set the bar for the next guy.
"I'm still enjoying myself and hopefully I've still got a few years in me." Tom Latham pressed his claim for a World Cup spot with a solid 59 while Colin de Grandhomme and Jimmy Neesham both scored 37 as they seek all-rounder berths.
Horror start
Bangladesh made a horror start to the run chase when Southee claimed a trio of top-order wickets in his opening two overs to leave the visitors reeling on two for three.
The run rate slowed to a crawl after Mushfiqur Rahim and Mahmudullah Riyad departed, each caught by Munro after offering rash shots in pursuit of quick runs.
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Resistance finally came in the form of Rahman and Mohammad Saifuddin, who made 44 in a 101-run partnership that added respectability to the scoreboard.
Captain Mortaza said Rahman's plucky 102 was one of the highlights of a tough series.
"It's disappointing but we have to come back stronger," he said.
Earlier, New Zealand registered identical 8-wicket wins in the first and second ODIs at Napier and Christchurch respectively.
For the tourists, this was their fourtth successive defeat in this tour. They also lost the One-Day practice match against an NZ XI at Lincoln by two wickets.
They will now play a three-match Tests series, starting February 28 at Hamilton.
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(With AFP inputs)
