South Africa 156/8

South Africa 156/8 (39.5 ov)

South Africa require another 66 runs with 2 wickets and 10.1 overs remaining

Nathan McCullum takes NZ to brink

New Zealand

   close in as Peterson goes

New Zealand v South Africa, World Cup 2011, quarter-final, Mirpur , Jacob Oram , Nathan McCullum

New Zealand stumble to 221 on slow track

South Africa attacked with spin and seam, shuffled their bowlers regularly like a pack of cards, and hustled on the field to keep a tight leash on New Zealand. Jesse Ryder and Ross Taylor were at the forefront of a revival from the depths of 16 for 2 but their departure in quick succession left New Zealand scrambling towards a below-par total on a slow track.

Jacob Oram

Carefully, almost mindful of a potential lower-order collapse on this pitch, Ryder and Taylor battled through. The odd boundary signalled growing comfort, but they never broke away decisively. A nervy equilibrium had been reached by the end of the 30th over with New Zealand reaching 112 for 2 and the game was waiting to be seized. New Zealand, however, weren't brave enough, or skilful enough, to take it. They made couple of weak-hearted attempts but only stumbled and stuttered.

First, it was Taylor, who raised New Zealand hopes with a slog-swept six off Peterson in the 32nd over but soon exited, falling to the same shot. He top-edged a slog sweep off Imran Tahir in the 33rd over to cue charged-up celebrations from the bowler.

Next, it was the turn of Scott Styris to flatter and deceive. He unfurled a lovely on driven four and a pulled boundary off Morne Morkel and lifted Johan Botha to the straight boundary to push New Zealand to 153 for 3 in the 38th over, but then fell, edging a slog on to his stumps against Morkel.

New Zealand sent in Kane Williamson and pressure escalated on Ryder to attack. Ryder tried but failed, top-edging a slog sweep off a delighted Tahir. With Ryder's exit New Zealand were on 157 for 5 by the 39th over and 250 went flying out of the window as they settled for a "decent" total. It was left to Williamson, who worked the angles with grunted pushes and punches, to lift New Zealand past 200. He lifted Robin Peterson for a six over long-on and punched Steyn to the extra cover boundary to give some joy to the New Zealand fans.

Imran Tahir

Credit must be given to South Africa, and Graeme Smith, who made innumerable bowling changes on this slow track. No bowler was exposed to any batsman for any length of period and barring Morkel, all the bowlers turned up with their A game. Morkel had an off day, struggling to find a nagging line or length and leaked almost six runs per over but redeemed himself somewhat by picking up a couple of wickets in the final overs.

It was Morkel who had allowed Ryder, and New Zealand, to break away initially at the start. Ryder made a scratchy start, playing too late on many deliveries, but broke free against Morkel, pulling and whiplashing him through the off side. Ryder also slapped Peterson for a couple of boundaries.

The back-lift was minimal, the foot movement was limited but precise, and the bat-speed increased tremendously whenever he unfurled those lashes through the off side. He brought up his fifty in the 22nd over and the hundred partnership with Taylor in the 30th over as New Zealand slowly moved towards a position of some comfort before it all went pear shaped.

Sriram Veera is a staff writer at ESPNcricinfo

New Zealand close in as Peterson goes

New Zealand

   close in as Peterson goes

New Zealand v South Africa, World Cup 2011, quarter-final, Mirpur , Jacob Oram

New Zealand stumble to 221 on slow track

South Africa attacked with spin and seam, shuffled their bowlers regularly like a pack of cards, and hustled on the field to keep a tight leash on New Zealand. Jesse Ryder and Ross Taylor were at the forefront of a revival from the depths of 16 for 2 but their departure in quick succession left New Zealand scrambling towards a below-par total on a slow track.

Jacob Oram

Carefully, almost mindful of a potential lower-order collapse on this pitch, Ryder and Taylor battled through. The odd boundary signalled growing comfort, but they never broke away decisively. A nervy equilibrium had been reached by the end of the 30th over with New Zealand reaching 112 for 2 and the game was waiting to be seized. New Zealand, however, weren't brave enough, or skilful enough, to take it. They made couple of weak-hearted attempts but only stumbled and stuttered.

First, it was Taylor, who raised New Zealand hopes with a slog-swept six off Peterson in the 32nd over but soon exited, falling to the same shot. He top-edged a slog sweep off Imran Tahir in the 33rd over to cue charged-up celebrations from the bowler.

Next, it was the turn of Scott Styris to flatter and deceive. He unfurled a lovely on driven four and a pulled boundary off Morne Morkel and lifted Johan Botha to the straight boundary to push New Zealand to 153 for 3 in the 38th over, but then fell, edging a slog on to his stumps against Morkel.

New Zealand sent in Kane Williamson and pressure escalated on Ryder to attack. Ryder tried but failed, top-edging a slog sweep off a delighted Tahir. With Ryder's exit New Zealand were on 157 for 5 by the 39th over and 250 went flying out of the window as they settled for a "decent" total. It was left to Williamson, who worked the angles with grunted pushes and punches, to lift New Zealand past 200. He lifted Robin Peterson for a six over long-on and punched Steyn to the extra cover boundary to give some joy to the New Zealand fans.

Imran Tahir

Credit must be given to South Africa, and Graeme Smith, who made innumerable bowling changes on this slow track. No bowler was exposed to any batsman for any length of period and barring Morkel, all the bowlers turned up with their A game. Morkel had an off day, struggling to find a nagging line or length and leaked almost six runs per over but redeemed himself somewhat by picking up a couple of wickets in the final overs.

It was Morkel who had allowed Ryder, and New Zealand, to break away initially at the start. Ryder made a scratchy start, playing too late on many deliveries, but broke free against Morkel, pulling and whiplashing him through the off side. Ryder also slapped Peterson for a couple of boundaries.

The back-lift was minimal, the foot movement was limited but precise, and the bat-speed increased tremendously whenever he unfurled those lashes through the off side. He brought up his fifty in the 22nd over and the hundred partnership with Taylor in the 30th over as New Zealand slowly moved towards a position of some comfort before it all went pear shaped.

Sriram Veera is a staff writer at ESPNcricinfo

South Africa 146/8

South Africa 146/8 (37.4 ov)

South Africa require another 76 runs with 2 wickets and 12.2 overs remaining

New Zealand v South Africa, World Cup 2011, quarter-final, Mirpur , Jacob Oram

New Zealand stumble to 221 on slow track

South Africa attacked with spin and seam, shuffled their bowlers regularly like a pack of cards, and hustled on the field to keep a tight leash on New Zealand. Jesse Ryder and Ross Taylor were at the forefront of a revival from the depths of 16 for 2 but their departure in quick succession left New Zealand scrambling towards a below-par total on a slow track.

Jacob Oram

Carefully, almost mindful of a potential lower-order collapse on this pitch, Ryder and Taylor battled through. The odd boundary signalled growing comfort, but they never broke away decisively. A nervy equilibrium had been reached by the end of the 30th over with New Zealand reaching 112 for 2 and the game was waiting to be seized. New Zealand, however, weren't brave enough, or skilful enough, to take it. They made couple of weak-hearted attempts but only stumbled and stuttered.

First, it was Taylor, who raised New Zealand hopes with a slog-swept six off Peterson in the 32nd over but soon exited, falling to the same shot. He top-edged a slog sweep off Imran Tahir in the 33rd over to cue charged-up celebrations from the bowler.

Next, it was the turn of Scott Styris to flatter and deceive. He unfurled a lovely on driven four and a pulled boundary off Morne Morkel and lifted Johan Botha to the straight boundary to push New Zealand to 153 for 3 in the 38th over, but then fell, edging a slog on to his stumps against Morkel.

New Zealand sent in Kane Williamson and pressure escalated on Ryder to attack. Ryder tried but failed, top-edging a slog sweep off a delighted Tahir. With Ryder's exit New Zealand were on 157 for 5 by the 39th over and 250 went flying out of the window as they settled for a "decent" total. It was left to Williamson, who worked the angles with grunted pushes and punches, to lift New Zealand past 200. He lifted Robin Peterson for a six over long-on and punched Steyn to the extra cover boundary to give some joy to the New Zealand fans.

Imran Tahir

Credit must be given to South Africa, and Graeme Smith, who made innumerable bowling changes on this slow track. No bowler was exposed to any batsman for any length of period and barring Morkel, all the bowlers turned up with their A game. Morkel had an off day, struggling to find a nagging line or length and leaked almost six runs per over but redeemed himself somewhat by picking up a couple of wickets in the final overs.

It was Morkel who had allowed Ryder, and New Zealand, to break away initially at the start. Ryder made a scratchy start, playing too late on many deliveries, but broke free against Morkel, pulling and whiplashing him through the off side. Ryder also slapped Peterson for a couple of boundaries.

The back-lift was minimal, the foot movement was limited but precise, and the bat-speed increased tremendously whenever he unfurled those lashes through the off side. He brought up his fifty in the 22nd over and the hundred partnership with Taylor in the 30th over as New Zealand slowly moved towards a position of some comfort before it all went pear shaped.

Sriram Veera is a staff writer at ESPNcricinfo

South Africa goes down

South Africa 136/7 (34.3 ov)

South Africa require another 86 runs with 3 wickets and 15.3 overs remaining

New Zealand v South Africa, World Cup 2011, quarter-final, Mirpur

New Zealand stumble to 221 on slow track

South Africa attacked with spin and seam, shuffled their bowlers regularly like a pack of cards, and hustled on the field to keep a tight leash on New Zealand. Jesse Ryder and Ross Taylor were at the forefront of a revival from the depths of 16 for 2 but their departure in quick succession left New Zealand scrambling towards a below-par total on a slow track.

Carefully, almost mindful of a potential lower-order collapse on this pitch, Ryder and Taylor battled through. The odd boundary signalled growing comfort, but they never broke away decisively. A nervy equilibrium had been reached by the end of the 30th over with New Zealand reaching 112 for 2 and the game was waiting to be seized. New Zealand, however, weren't brave enough, or skilful enough, to take it. They made couple of weak-hearted attempts but only stumbled and stuttered.

Imran Tahir

First, it was Taylor, who raised New Zealand hopes with a slog-swept six off Peterson in the 32nd over but soon exited, falling to the same shot. He top-edged a slog sweep off Imran Tahir in the 33rd over to cue charged-up celebrations from the bowler.

Next, it was the turn of Scott Styris to flatter and deceive. He unfurled a lovely on driven four and a pulled boundary off Morne Morkel and lifted Johan Botha to the straight boundary to push New Zealand to 153 for 3 in the 38th over, but then fell, edging a slog on to his stumps against Morkel.

New Zealand sent in Kane Williamson and pressure escalated on Ryder to attack. Ryder tried but failed, top-edging a slog sweep off a delighted Tahir. With Ryder's exit New Zealand were on 157 for 5 by the 39th over and 250 went flying out of the window as they settled for a "decent" total. It was left to Williamson, who worked the angles with grunted pushes and punches, to lift New Zealand past 200. He lifted Robin Peterson for a six over long-on and punched Steyn to the extra cover boundary to give some joy to the New Zealand fans.

Credit must be given to South Africa, and Graeme Smith, who made innumerable bowling changes on this slow track. No bowler was exposed to any batsman for any length of period and barring Morkel, all the bowlers turned up with their A game. Morkel had an off day, struggling to find a nagging line or length and leaked almost six runs per over but redeemed himself somewhat by picking up a couple of wickets in the final overs.

It was Morkel who had allowed Ryder, and New Zealand, to break away initially at the start. Ryder made a scratchy start, playing too late on many deliveries, but broke free against Morkel, pulling and whiplashing him through the off side. Ryder also slapped Peterson for a couple of boundaries.

The back-lift was minimal, the foot movement was limited but precise, and the bat-speed increased tremendously whenever he unfurled those lashes through the off side. He brought up his fifty in the 22nd over and the hundred partnership with Taylor in the 30th over as New Zealand slowly moved towards a position of some comfort before it all went pear shaped.

Sriram Veera is a staff writer at ESPNcricinfo

South Africa 132/7

South Africa 132/7 (34.2 ov)

South Africa require another 90 runs with 3 wickets and 15.4 overs remaining

New Zealand v South Africa, World Cup 2011, quarter-final, Mirpur

New Zealand stumble to 221 on slow track

South Africa attacked with spin and seam, shuffled their bowlers regularly like a pack of cards, and hustled on the field to keep a tight leash on New Zealand. Jesse Ryder and Ross Taylor were at the forefront of a revival from the depths of 16 for 2 but their departure in quick succession left New Zealand scrambling towards a below-par total on a slow track.

Carefully, almost mindful of a potential lower-order collapse on this pitch, Ryder and Taylor battled through. The odd boundary signalled growing comfort, but they never broke away decisively. A nervy equilibrium had been reached by the end of the 30th over with New Zealand reaching 112 for 2 and the game was waiting to be seized. New Zealand, however, weren't brave enough, or skilful enough, to take it. They made couple of weak-hearted attempts but only stumbled and stuttered.

Imran Tahir

First, it was Taylor, who raised New Zealand hopes with a slog-swept six off Peterson in the 32nd over but soon exited, falling to the same shot. He top-edged a slog sweep off Imran Tahir in the 33rd over to cue charged-up celebrations from the bowler.

Next, it was the turn of Scott Styris to flatter and deceive. He unfurled a lovely on driven four and a pulled boundary off Morne Morkel and lifted Johan Botha to the straight boundary to push New Zealand to 153 for 3 in the 38th over, but then fell, edging a slog on to his stumps against Morkel.

New Zealand sent in Kane Williamson and pressure escalated on Ryder to attack. Ryder tried but failed, top-edging a slog sweep off a delighted Tahir. With Ryder's exit New Zealand were on 157 for 5 by the 39th over and 250 went flying out of the window as they settled for a "decent" total. It was left to Williamson, who worked the angles with grunted pushes and punches, to lift New Zealand past 200. He lifted Robin Peterson for a six over long-on and punched Steyn to the extra cover boundary to give some joy to the New Zealand fans.

Credit must be given to South Africa, and Graeme Smith, who made innumerable bowling changes on this slow track. No bowler was exposed to any batsman for any length of period and barring Morkel, all the bowlers turned up with their A game. Morkel had an off day, struggling to find a nagging line or length and leaked almost six runs per over but redeemed himself somewhat by picking up a couple of wickets in the final overs.

It was Morkel who had allowed Ryder, and New Zealand, to break away initially at the start. Ryder made a scratchy start, playing too late on many deliveries, but broke free against Morkel, pulling and whiplashing him through the off side. Ryder also slapped Peterson for a couple of boundaries.

The back-lift was minimal, the foot movement was limited but precise, and the bat-speed increased tremendously whenever he unfurled those lashes through the off side. He brought up his fifty in the 22nd over and the hundred partnership with Taylor in the 30th over as New Zealand slowly moved towards a position of some comfort before it all went pear shaped.

Sriram Veera is a staff writer at ESPNcricinfo

South Africa 132/6

South Africa 132/6 (34.1 ov)

South Africa require another 90 runs with 4 wickets and 15.5 overs remaining

New Zealand v South Africa, World Cup 2011, quarter-final, Mirpur

New Zealand stumble to 221 on slow track

South Africa attacked with spin and seam, shuffled their bowlers regularly like a pack of cards, and hustled on the field to keep a tight leash on New Zealand. Jesse Ryder and Ross Taylor were at the forefront of a revival from the depths of 16 for 2 but their departure in quick succession left New Zealand scrambling towards a below-par total on a slow track.

Carefully, almost mindful of a potential lower-order collapse on this pitch, Ryder and Taylor battled through. The odd boundary signalled growing comfort, but they never broke away decisively. A nervy equilibrium had been reached by the end of the 30th over with New Zealand reaching 112 for 2 and the game was waiting to be seized. New Zealand, however, weren't brave enough, or skilful enough, to take it. They made couple of weak-hearted attempts but only stumbled and stuttered.

Imran Tahir

First, it was Taylor, who raised New Zealand hopes with a slog-swept six off Peterson in the 32nd over but soon exited, falling to the same shot. He top-edged a slog sweep off Imran Tahir in the 33rd over to cue charged-up celebrations from the bowler.

Next, it was the turn of Scott Styris to flatter and deceive. He unfurled a lovely on driven four and a pulled boundary off Morne Morkel and lifted Johan Botha to the straight boundary to push New Zealand to 153 for 3 in the 38th over, but then fell, edging a slog on to his stumps against Morkel.

New Zealand sent in Kane Williamson and pressure escalated on Ryder to attack. Ryder tried but failed, top-edging a slog sweep off a delighted Tahir. With Ryder's exit New Zealand were on 157 for 5 by the 39th over and 250 went flying out of the window as they settled for a "decent" total. It was left to Williamson, who worked the angles with grunted pushes and punches, to lift New Zealand past 200. He lifted Robin Peterson for a six over long-on and punched Steyn to the extra cover boundary to give some joy to the New Zealand fans.

Credit must be given to South Africa, and Graeme Smith, who made innumerable bowling changes on this slow track. No bowler was exposed to any batsman for any length of period and barring Morkel, all the bowlers turned up with their A game. Morkel had an off day, struggling to find a nagging line or length and leaked almost six runs per over but redeemed himself somewhat by picking up a couple of wickets in the final overs.

It was Morkel who had allowed Ryder, and New Zealand, to break away initially at the start. Ryder made a scratchy start, playing too late on many deliveries, but broke free against Morkel, pulling and whiplashing him through the off side. Ryder also slapped Peterson for a couple of boundaries.

The back-lift was minimal, the foot movement was limited but precise, and the bat-speed increased tremendously whenever he unfurled those lashes through the off side. He brought up his fifty in the 22nd over and the hundred partnership with Taylor in the 30th over as New Zealand slowly moved towards a position of some comfort before it all went pear shaped.

Sriram Veera is a staff writer at ESPNcricinfo

New Zealand v South Africa, World Cup 2011, quarter-final, Mirpur

New Zealand stumble to 221 on slow track

South Africa attacked with spin and seam, shuffled their bowlers regularly like a pack of cards, and hustled on the field to keep a tight leash on New Zealand. Jesse Ryder and Ross Taylor were at the forefront of a revival from the depths of 16 for 2 but their departure in quick succession left New Zealand scrambling towards a below-par total on a slow track.

Carefully, almost mindful of a potential lower-order collapse on this pitch, Ryder and Taylor battled through. The odd boundary signalled growing comfort, but they never broke away decisively. A nervy equilibrium had been reached by the end of the 30th over with New Zealand reaching 112 for 2 and the game was waiting to be seized. New Zealand, however, weren't brave enough, or skilful enough, to take it. They made couple of weak-hearted attempts but only stumbled and stuttered.

Imran Tahir

First, it was Taylor, who raised New Zealand hopes with a slog-swept six off Peterson in the 32nd over but soon exited, falling to the same shot. He top-edged a slog sweep off Imran Tahir in the 33rd over to cue charged-up celebrations from the bowler.

Next, it was the turn of Scott Styris to flatter and deceive. He unfurled a lovely on driven four and a pulled boundary off Morne Morkel and lifted Johan Botha to the straight boundary to push New Zealand to 153 for 3 in the 38th over, but then fell, edging a slog on to his stumps against Morkel.

New Zealand sent in Kane Williamson and pressure escalated on Ryder to attack. Ryder tried but failed, top-edging a slog sweep off a delighted Tahir. With Ryder's exit New Zealand were on 157 for 5 by the 39th over and 250 went flying out of the window as they settled for a "decent" total. It was left to Williamson, who worked the angles with grunted pushes and punches, to lift New Zealand past 200. He lifted Robin Peterson for a six over long-on and punched Steyn to the extra cover boundary to give some joy to the New Zealand fans.

Credit must be given to South Africa, and Graeme Smith, who made innumerable bowling changes on this slow track. No bowler was exposed to any batsman for any length of period and barring Morkel, all the bowlers turned up with their A game. Morkel had an off day, struggling to find a nagging line or length and leaked almost six runs per over but redeemed himself somewhat by picking up a couple of wickets in the final overs.

It was Morkel who had allowed Ryder, and New Zealand, to break away initially at the start. Ryder made a scratchy start, playing too late on many deliveries, but broke free against Morkel, pulling and whiplashing him through the off side. Ryder also slapped Peterson for a couple of boundaries.

The back-lift was minimal, the foot movement was limited but precise, and the bat-speed increased tremendously whenever he unfurled those lashes through the off side. He brought up his fifty in the 22nd over and the hundred partnership with Taylor in the 30th over as New Zealand slowly moved towards a position of some comfort before it all went pear shaped.

Sriram Veera is a staff writer at ESPNcricinfo

New Zealand v South Africa, World Cup 2011, 3rd quarter-final, Mirpur

Happy memories for Kallis in Dhaka

Firdose Moonda in Mirpur

March 23, 2011

Much has changed for Jacques Kallis since 1998. He has gone from being the wide-eyed newbie to the experienced sage, from being a man with a gritty Test century to his name to being a man with 40 - some hard-fought, some classy. Yet, two things remain the same: his hair, although that's only been possible because of the intervention of technology, and the fact the only ICC trophy he has to his name is the Wills International Cup.

"It's almost 15 years ago, but I still have some fond memories of the final," Kallis said in Dhaka, the same city where the final was played and the place where South Africa are preparing for their World Cup quarter-final match against New Zealand. "It's the only time we ever won an ICC event and hopefully it's a good omen for the games to come."

Jacques Kallis

Kallis has been through it all since then: the heartbreak in 1999, the miscalculation in 2003, the overconfidence in 2007 and now the "play it one game at a time" in 2011. Every time, South Africa have had a strong side, with a few fearsome names and the potential to be titleholders. Every time, they went home disappointed. Kallis thinks one of the reasons for that could be an overdependence on individuals: Lance Klusener in 1999, Shaun Pollock in 2003 and Kallis himself, AB de Villiers and Graeme Smith in 2007.

This time, Kallis thinks the expectation is more evenly spread, with any one of the 15 squad members, nevermind just the eleven on the field, capable of being called upon to do the job. "Everyone has contributed, whereas in the past we've had to rely on one or two players," he said. "Everyone in the squad seems to be in good form. It also hasn't only been eleven guys that have played their part, as we've seen in the last few games. The guys coming in have performed well, which is fantastic."

South Africa's runs have mostly come from two of the top four, with AB de Villiers and Hashim Amla leading the charts, while Kallis himself seems to have found a good rhythm. The middle order have shown character too with JP Duminy and Faf du Plessis hardening up what looked like a soft centre. The wickets have been the same, spread amongst the frontline seamers and the spinners, and going into what Kallis calls the "business end" of the tournament, it's hard to pick out any discernable weakness in the South African game.

That's why Kallis thinks they don't need to tweak their set-up too much even though the seriousness of each match has intensified. "We have to just keep doing the things that we did in the group stage, where we played some unbelievable cricket. There's no reason to change anything." he said. South Africa are the only team to have come out of the group stages having bowled out every side they played against and were only once bowled out themselves.

South Africa have marketed themselves as "process driven" through the tournament, a team that wants to make sure they get their side of the game done correctly, and have said they are not worried about the results. In the knockouts, that thinking has to change a little, because the results matter and the process needs to be geared towards getting the results.

Kallis said that South Africa's preparations are slanted that way and that although the process is still important, it's the time of the competition where all the work they have put into the process should pay off. "I've always seen this part of the tournament as an exam. If you've prepared well and done the hard worked, you just have to go and write the test. If you're underprepared, that's when you start getting nervous."

South Africa have studied each opposition closely, building a plan tailor made for certain players on certain days and New Zealand will be no different. "New Zealand are a dangerous side that on their day can beat anyone. They bat deep and have plenty of allrounders," Kallis said. New Zealand's depth is what South Africa seem most concerned about with Kallis saying that they need to be mindful of the need to compete over the entire match and not just to make early dents. "It won't be game over even if we get early wickets and it's crucial that we stay on top of our game for 300 balls and ensure that we pounce at the slightest show of weakness."

South Africa beat Bangladesh at this ground five days ago and have had the opportunity to play on the wicket, while New Zealand have not been to Dhaka yet. The last time New Zealand visited Bangladesh, they were beaten four-nil in an ODI series, but Kallis thinks that will mean little on match day, and that neither team will have the advantage. He expects that the wicket will keep low and that "250 or 260 is about a par score."

Firdose Moonda is ESPNcricinfo's South Africa correspondent

New Zealand v South Africa, World Cup 2011, 3rd quarter-final, Mirpur

South Africa not worried by opposition - du Plessis

Firdose Moonda in Mirpur

March 21, 2011

By finishing top of Group B, South Africa have set up a quarter-final clash with the fourth-placed team in Group A: New Zealand, a team who came into the World Cup having lost 11 out of the 12 games they had played in the subcontinent over the last year. South Africa, however, are not paying too much attention to who their opposition is, according to their allrounder Faf du Plessis.

"We specifically said we don't want to focus on who we are playing and have our minds distracted by our opposition," du Plessis said at the team hotel in Dhaka. "If we prepare well and we are ready for the game and we play to our full ability, we are confident that we will win the quarter-final."

Lonwabo Tsotsobe

After winning five out of their six group-stage matches, South Africa have earned recognition as one of the strongest sides in the tournament, perhaps even the favourites now, a tag they did not have coming in to the competition. They've approached each game as an individual entity, not a stepping stone, or a rung on a ladder, but as unit on its own. Even though they have now reached the do-or-die stage of the tournament, du Plessis said their approach won't change.

"My experience of knockouts is not to do anything different. That will take all the pressure off. When you do the opposite and it gets more tense and there is more pressure, you don't play to your full potential."

South Africa have played as a unit, with wickets spread among the seamers and the spinners, and runs coming from everyone in the line-up. It has meant that, on a day when one doesn't perform, they are safe in knowing someone else will. du Plessis said the win against India played an important part in the team reaching this point. "The win against India gave us a lot of confidence because everyone chipped in."

It also served as a morale booster, after a demoralising loss to England in Chennai where the batting collapsed and South Africa were accused of crumbling under pressure. "We should have won the game against England," du Plessis said. "But it gave us a sense of what to do when we are in that situation again."

Some called it getting the choke over and done with early, and while du Plessis didn't say so in so many words, he indicated that the team had learnt their lesson from that outing. It also allowed them to focus on moving forward and remaining positive.

"If you think about making mistakes, you're not going to play your best game. Even when we were in tough situations, guys played with freedom and got us out of the hole," he said, perhaps referring to the chase against India or the way the batting came back from being 117 for 5 against Ireland.

South Africa put in a complete performance against Bangladesh, both with bat and ball and beat them by 206 runs in Mirpur. They will play New Zealand at the same venue, and du Plessis thinks the experience on the pitch at the Shere Bangla National Stadium will serve them in good stead.

The pitch is a typical subcontinent wicket, although it doesn't look that way. du Plessis admitted that the team were surprised by the colour of the surface. "I haven't played on a wicket that looks charcoalish. It gets a bit slower the later you bat." du Plessis doesn't expect the toss to play a big role in the match, even though it is a day/night game.

The conditions won't be a concern because South Africa have played in them before, and the opposition is not an issue, because, as du Plessis reiterated, South Africa refuse to make them one. "We've seen them play a lot of cricket on television. They are a dangerous side, similar to West Indies in that they've got match winners as well. But we are not too worried about that."

Firdose Moonda is ESPNcricinfo's South Africa correspondent