Trent Boult runs in to bowl with the pink ball during a Black Caps training session at Adelaide Oval on Wednesday.

An unchanged New Zealand cricket team looks set to stride onto the Adelaide Oval on Friday after key fast bowler Trent Boult trained strongly in the nets.

Under dark skies in a blustery breeze, the left-arm paceman got through his prescribed eight overs in two spells, ahead of the third test against Australia which the Black Caps need to win to level the series.

Having not bowled since the drawn second test due to back soreness, Boult looked strong and showed little sign of discomfort on Wednesday. He began off a short run then warmed to his work at full pace for five overs, even delivering a bouncer or two at his captain Brendon McCullum.

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Boult still needs to wake up free of soreness on Thursday and have a light run before he's cleared to play his 35th test. But coach Mike Hesson was optimistic and saw nothing to alarm him after Boult completed his designated task.

"Today was never a definitive day; it was just the next step. He got through today so we just have to see how he scrubs up tomorrow," Hesson said.

"He got better as the day wore on. [Eight overs] was what we wanted him to do… we're relatively confident."

Boult looms as a central figure to the Black Caps' chances of winning just their fourth test on Australian soil and extending their run of unbeaten series to eight. After Boult rested for three months to get over a back stress injury suffered in England, he was playing catch-up and wasn't at his best in Brisbane and Perth where he took six wickets at 64.67 across 82 overs.

Hesson said Boult's confidence had returned after some initial alarm after Perth when he emerged sore and was diagnosed with an irritated disc in his back, a similar injury that Tim Southee defied in the second test.

"There was a period where he was really unsure about things but he's quite confident now how it's going."

Boult has 129 wickets at 29 in his test career and his tandem bowling with Southee was a feature of the Black Caps' strong run of test form.

This test would be an opportune time for them to fire again as a duo, with the Adelaide Oval pitch unveiled with more grass than the Black Caps expected; a welcome change from the Perth tarmac.

Hesson was pleasantly surprised and will likely rubber stamp an unchanged New Zealand team from Perth where they took a points decision on each of the last four days. Left-armer Neil Wagner will miss the cut to Matt Henry again, and Mitchell Santner will also miss out as Mark Craig takes the solitary spinner's berth.

"It looks like a New Zealand wicket," Hesson said.

"There's more grass than we've had in last wee while but a bit less than the Basin [Reserve]. It looks a good surface and all reports say it's got a bit of something in it for everybody. I don't think they'll take heck of a lot [of grass] off it."

New Zealand trained for two-and-a-half hours with the pink ball in the nets, and will practice under lights on Thursday and have a fielding session on the oval.

Key batsman Kane Williamson looked as formidable as ever and will look to extend his series record of 397 runs at an average of 132.

"He's a really un-flustered sort of character so you'd never know whether he got a hundred in the last game or missed out. He just goes about his work. He's in a good space."

Australia arrived for their scheduled Wednesday night session to light rain, but the forecast is fine for the next few days with sunny skies and a maximum temperature of 23degC expected on day one.

The hosts are expected to make two enforced changes from Perth, with Usman Khawaja (hamstring) and Mitchell Johnson (retired) making way for batsman Shaun Marsh and workhorse seamer Peter Siddle. Fast bowler James Pattinson looked a good prospect of returning, too, but Wednesday's indications were that Josh Hazlewood would retain his spot alongside Siddle and strike weapon Mitchell Starc, with Nathan Lyon their solitary spinner.