Weeks of speculation about how the first pink ball, day-night test will unfold has just about ended.
It's like waiting for a dam to burst and Tim Southee, for one, admits that part of him just wants to get on with the series-deciding match against Australia. There's only so much supposition, ifs and buts that can be had.
The simple equation is New Zealand need to find ways to play the match better than their hosts to square the three-game rubber.
"There's been a bit of an extended break since the second test, and there is a lot of anticipation and excitement around the next few days," senior New Zealand bowler Southee said.
"Part of you just wants to get into it, get amongst it, but we've still got a few days and I'm sure there are still learnings to be done and some hard work at training leading into the game."
Southee is preparing for his ninth test against Australia in a 43-test career, and his second in Adelaide. He'll be hoping for a better return on the new drop-in pitch and with a pink ball second time around - in 2008 he took none for 100 as Australia won by an innings and 62 runs.
Captain Brendon McCullum and senior batsman Ross Taylor are the only other survivors from that match, when Adelaide Oval was among the game's most picturesque grounds. Martin Guptill is the only other current tourist to have played here, in New Zealand's most recent ODI at the venue.
It has been substantially redeveloped but is expected to retain one trait - as the country's best batting pitch, at least in daylight hours.
Southee knows the bowlers must continue their progress from day two of the drawn second test in Perth, and find ways to make the dewy night time conditions work for them if they are to unlock the Australian batting.
"I don't think as a bowling group we've hit our straps the way we'd like on this tour so far, but there's still one game to go and hopefully we can show the high standards we've shown for a long time now," Southee said.
There was noticeably more swing in the evening period of the game against a West Australian XI in Perth last weekend.
"We got a lot out of those two days. We're continuing to learn about what the pink ball is going to throw at us, just the way it reacts at certain times of the day and how you're going to cope with different phases throughout the day."
He doubts the changed playing hours will affect the players, who are familiar with day-night cricket; scotched talk of any similarity and revenge motivation out of the World Cup final loss under lights; and is confident all the hoopla surrounding this match will not take New Zealand's eyes off the main objective.
"No, our main focus is to win. Our mindset hasn't changed. There is the excitement - it's something different - and playing in front of 40-odd thousand at a test, which doesn't happen too often for us."
By David Leggat of the New Zealand Herald, in Adelaide
