Dodging defeat will draw hefty bonus for Australian team Jesse Hogan Most of Australia's players will be in line for a bonus of at least $60,000 if they can avoid defeat in the inaugural day-night Test, thanks to a spike in prizemoney from Cricket Australia that helped ensure its plan to host the game came to fruition. 
The reluctance of players to use the pink ball dissipated after CA committed an additional $1 million in prizemoney for the series, split 60-40 in favour of the series winner or 50-50 in the event of a draw.
Australia hold a 1-nil lead coming into the final match. If this lead is preserved, either with victory against New Zealand or a draw, it will allow players to share $600,000.
The prizemoney, either $600,000 or $500,000, will be allocated on a pro-rata basis among members of the squads - not just the final XI - for all three Tests. In the event of a series victory players would receive about $16,000 for each Test in the series.
The payment is on top of prizemoney stipulated in the collective agreement between CA and the Australian Cricketers' Association.
A series victory against New Zealand, as an opponent ranked outside the top four, would trigger a bonus of just more than $14,000, while victory in the final match would deliver participating players an additional $5400. For players who have featured in the entire series, which in the current squad excludes only Shaun Marsh, James Pattinson and Steve O'Keefe, their pre-tax total bonuses would be close to $74,000 if the series finishes 2-0 in favour of Australia.
Off-spinner Nathan Lyon suspects turf conditions for the pink ball could not be more conducive to it passing its first big examination.
The wicket block seen at most grounds - consisting of at least half a dozen pitches at various stages of growth - is vastly different at Adelaide Oval for this match.
There are only three drop-in pitches in the centre of the ground, with the ones on either side of the Test pitch particularly lush. With the pitch expected to feature a liberal covering of grass, it is predicted to produce typically good conditions for bowlers. The exception, difficulty in achieving reverse swing because most of the wicket block is so soft, should increase the likelihood of the pink ball retaining its colour for longer.
Lyon, a groundsman before his cricket career took off about five years ago, experienced the favourable conditions for the pink ball at Adelaide Oval in a Sheffield Shield match last month. "It held up pretty well when we played here a few weeks ago. It doesn't have that abrasive effect and will be quite hard to get it to reverse," he said.