There may be a classic trans-Tasman clash looming in the T20 tri-series final, but don't expect too much in the way of any ill-tempered sledging between the sides at Eden Park on Wednesday.
In fact, trans-Tasman relations seem to be at an all-time high, judging by today's comments from captains Kane Williamson and David Warner.
The mild climate's no better typified than by the relationship between the two skippers, teammates at Indian Premier League side Sunrisers Hyderabad, who have bonded over a mutual love for darts.
"We actually play a lot of darts together," Warner laughs. "He sends me these photos where he places his darts in the triple 20, then sends me a photo and says 'look bro, I got 180'.
"I reckon in the IPL the last two or three years, we would've thrown over 5000 darts and we couldn't get one, and first one he gets home, he throws one. I told him it didn't count because I didn't see it."
The days of Brad Haddin and Grant Elliot spitting vitriol towards one another now seem nothing but a distant memory when compared to the positively amicable vibes on the pitch these days. Warner assessed things on a whole as "peaceful".
The Aussie batsman even attempted to offer up his own bat for Williamson to sample following Tuesday's media shoot on the Eden Park turf.
"Me and Kane get along really well, and I've played with Rosco [Ross Taylor] at Delhi [Daredevils], he's a great fella.
"There's not a bad word you can say about the New Zealand team, that's for sure."
Colin Munro giving Aaron Finch's bat a whirl immediately after the blockbuster in Auckland wrapped up, Glen Maxwell running in from the boundary as one of the first to congratulate Martin Guptill on his sublime century in the same game... any iciness from previous years has clearly thawed.
Williamson co-signs his counterpart, pointing towards the evolving nature of the short forms of the game as a reason for the greater familiarity between players.
"There's so much franchise cricket these days that you get to know guys from all around the world," says the 27-year-old. "That's the great thing about sport.
"But when it is on the park, it's a very competitive atmosphere. It is peaceful and guys get on well, but they still play hard."
Of course, Williamson's take on the '180' incident is a much different one to Warner's, as he looks forward to another darts duel.
"We'll be having another one fairly soon, which will be fun. My first one was actually on camera, which kept him quiet.
"But, yeah, we have some good battles with the darts and a few of the other guys get involved as well."
Could New Zealand finally be over the infamous "Underarm"? That may be yet be a bridge too far.
Newshub.
