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Blackcaps ready to raise bar against unbeaten South Africa in T20 World Cup semi
Sport Nation | March 4, 2026 9:50 AM CST

Blackcaps captain Mitchell Santner wants his team to piece together their first "perfect game" of the Twenty20 ‌World Cup when they face in-form South Africa in the first semi-final at Eden Gardens.
South Africa remains the tournament's only unbeaten team,m and their seven wins in a row include a seven-wicket thumping of New Zealand in the group stage in Ahmedabad.
But neither side is reading too much into that result, with Proteas captain Aiden Markram insisting they will take ‌nothing for granted on Thursday (NZ time).
"I wish cricket were that easy," Markram said. "New ‌Zealand are a ⁠quality team, they've proved that over many years now.
"We had ​a good run-out against them in the group stage. But both teams have played a lot of cricket since then, and it's completely a fresh start tomorrow. I don't think it's as straightforward as just being able to repeat this."
"We haven't probably played the perfect game throughout this ‌tournament. I guess ‌that's a ⁠good thing for us," Santner said. "If we can ​put it all together, it puts us in a pretty good position.

"We know South Africa is going to be a threat. We're just going to try to put some pressure on them at different stages of the game, and they're going to do the same for ​us."
Neither team has previously played in Kolkata this tournament, and both captains said much will depend on the conditions and who adapts to them best.
Markram said South Africa's ​perfect ​run was down to their smart ​cricket, highlighting the calm decision-making coursing through the ‌group and the influence of wicketkeeper-batter Quinton de Kock.
"I think it's more about making really good decisions under pressure. We've got a lot of good experience in the group.
"Quinny reads conditions really well from behind the stumps, and that makes a massive difference for us. We ​get that around the group, and the guys come up with plans from there. Ultimately, ​you need to execute ⁠them. We don't try to complicate too much."


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