The Blackcaps are banking that a change of format will bring a change of fortune for captain Kane Williamson, after his early exit from the Indian Premier League.
Williamson, 31, departed India on Wednesday to return home to New Zealand, with he and his partner about to welcome their second child.
But Williamson's early exit from India could come as a blessing in disguise.
As captain of Sunrisers Hyderabad, Williamson has endured his worst season in world cricket's premier Twenty20 tournament.
From 13 matches, Williamson has scored just 216 runs at an average of 19.63, coming at a strike-rate of 93.50 runs per 100 balls.
Williamson's slump has been so detrimental to Sunrisers, that the Blackcaps captain even demoted himself from an opening batter to No.6 in the order in his side's three-run victory over Mumbai Indians on Wednesday (NZ time).
But Williamson's exit will also give him an extended opportunity to prepare for the upcoming three test series against England, with coach Gary Stead hopeful a return to test cricket will give his captain the room and time to re-discover his touch.
"He's a bit disappointed he hasn't got the runs that he wanted through the IPL," Stead said. "You don't often see the great players miss out perhaps as much as he has.
"But what we have to understand is that he's coming back into red ball cricket. I think that will suit where he's at with his game, and his temperament.
"We're looking forward to having Kane back - as we always do."
Williamson hasn't played a test for New Zealand since November last year, as a troublesome elbow injury sidelined him for the Blackcaps' entire home summer, and drawn series against Bangladesh and South Africa.
But while Williamson's early arrival from India will be a boost for the Blackcaps, the team will have to temporarily make do without the pair of Trent Boult and Daryl Mitchell.
The duo are both part of Rajasthan Royals in the IPL, who have sealed their qualification for the finals.
Should Rajasthan reach the final, Boult and Mitchell would arrive in England without the opportunity for any red ball practice, with the Blackcaps having two warm-up matches before the start of the test series on June 2.
The IPL will be played on May 30 (NZ time), just days before the start of the first test.
Boult is almost certain to line up for the Blackcaps in the series opener at Lord's - forming the four-pronged seam attack with Tim Southee, Kyle Jamieson and Neil Wagner, while Mitchell is the squad's spare batter, and could be in contention should Henry Nicholls fail to recover from a calf strain.
Stead, though, accepts the reality of the situation, with travel between club and international commitments a common sight in the modern game.
"They're professionals in that area. They do it regularly," he added.
"The only question mark for us will be if people are in the IPL final, the closeness of that to the first test, and whether they are ready or not.
"That'll be something that'll play out in the next week or so."
The Blackcaps will be boosted by the return of Southee at the very least, following his Kolkata Knight Riders' failure to qualify for the IPL finals with defeat on Thursday (NZ time).
