South Africa captain Graeme Smith says he's refusing to underestimate the street-wise New Zealand team in today's World Cup quarterfinal match.
South Africa has never won the World Cup despite being a favourite in previous editions.
New Zealand is a five-time semifinalist. Neither team has reached a final, although the Black Caps tend to save their best for the limited-overs showpiece.
"New Zealand has always been a very street-wise, street-smart team and they've always played well to their abilities and they've always got a lot of guys that can contribute so you need to play well to beat them," Smith said.
South Africa sailed through the group stages with victories over the West Indies, Netherlands, Ireland, Bangladesh and pre-tournament favourites India. The run was only marred by a six-run loss to England in a low-scoring game.
Smith said the Proteas wanted to continue their dominance, but hinted it would be a tight contest.
"It's two quality teams tomorrow, anyone from here can win the World Cup and that's what makes this tournament exciting," he said.
"They have some power batters, some guys that really take the game to you," he said. "Especially from a bowling point of view, they always take the pace off the ball, they have a lot of guys that can change the pace."
But Smith was confident South Africa could reach the last four.
"We're in a great place at the moment, We've had 10 days in Bangladesh so we've had to keep ourselves busy a little bit outside training sessions, just keep things a bit fresh in the mind," he said.
Meantime, New Zealand hopes the return of skipper Daniel Vettori can inspire the team to a sixth World Cup semifinal.
Vettori strained ligaments in his right knee against Pakistan and missed New Zealand's final two group games, but he said he "should be fine" for today's quarterfinal.
Paceman Kyle Mills is also set to return from a calf strain and Vettori said opening batsman and wicketkeeper Brendon McCullum will continue to play through a knee problem.
The game could be Vettori's last as captain of the one-day side. The 31-year-old intends to give up the captaincy of the one-day and Twenty20 sides after the tournament.
