Beauden Barrett spoke to Dan Carter at the All Blacks training camp in Christchurch © Getty Images

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Beauden Barrett may have edged ahead of Aaron Cruden in the race to wear New Zealand's No.10 jersey in the first Test against England, with All Blacks assistant coach Ian Foster saying "he's doing everything right, he's putting us under pressure, and that's exactly what we want out of him".

Barrett is yet to start any of his 16 Tests at fly-half, but he is the form No.10 in New Zealand this season and he produced a near-perfect display as the Hurricanes dismantled the Chiefs on Saturday, when his chief rival for the Test jumper, Cruden, the incumbent in Dan Carter's absence, returned from his broken left thumb to play 25 minutes off the bench.

"[Cruden] looked rusty … but that's to be expected," Foster told Fairfax Media in New Zealand. "With a bit of luck he'll have a good run next week and I'm sure he'll improve quickly.

"He's got the mental capacity to come back. We think he can deal with pressure pretty well. What he hasn't had to deal with is a lengthy spell from an injury. Time will tell. ... this week in New Plymouth I'm sure he'll get a bit more game time and we'll make an assessment after that."

Foster said, however, that Barrett's case was becoming difficult to ignore.

"You look at the performance again of Beauden [against the Chiefs] for example just to pick one," Foster said as the All Blacks wider training group arrived in Wellington. "He just keeps putting his hand up and saying he wants to be on the park. Beaudy's played with a good degree of physicality in both his ball carrying and defence. His goal kicking is outstanding. He's doing everything right. He's putting us under pressure and that's exactly what we want out of him. He's a young man who is ambitious and is pushing us and we're delighted with that."