The Silver Ferns wrapped up the opening day of Netball's Fast5 competition with a 38-29 loss to Australia in Christchurch.
Fresh from two wins from two to begin Saturday's play, New Zealand's trans-Tasman rivals provided a reality check, as the Diamonds ended the opening day on the perfect note after they were stunned by Jamaica.
A game-high 17 goals from Grace Nweke wasn't enough for the Ferns, while Australia's Lucy Austin scored 13 from her 12 shots, and was supported by Sophie Fawns (11) Tippah Dwan (10) and Georgie Horjus.
New Zealand conclude the round robin stage against Jamaica and South Africa on Sunday, before the top two sides advance to the final.
Earlier,the hosts were too strong for the English at Wolfbrook Arena, cashing in during the power play periods at the ends of each quarter and riding the hot hands of Amorangi Malesala from deep and the ever-reliable Nweke to establish a big early lead.
England were left chasing the contest and, as both sets of shooters cooled off from long-range, the New Zealanders had enough in the bank to close out the win.
The result follows their opening win over Malawi earlier in the afternoon, when they eased to a dominant 42-13 victory.
Desperate for a return to form after last year's third-place finish, the Ferns bolted to a hefty advantage on the back of some sharpshooting from Nweke.
Making her debut in the format, Nweke scored a game-high 15 points, while Malesala chimed in with some long-range bombs during the power play to establish a sizeable lead the Africans never threatened.
The Silver Ferns have one matches remaining on day one, scheduled to face defending champions Australia later in the evening.
On Sunday, they'll take on Jamaica and South Africa, with the top two in the six-team competition progressing to the final.
In other results, Australia were beaten in a dramatic finish against Jamaica, as Gezelle Allison drained a three-pointer (doubled to two due to the power play) at the final whistle to steal a 38-36 win.
Jamaica repeated those heroics in their second contest of the afternoon, as Allison nailed a six-pointer in the dying seconds to lift her side to a 41-37 win over Malawi.
New Zealand have won seven of the 10 Fast Five tournaments staged but just one of the last three.
