McCullum hails Kiwi effort

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The Kiwis coasted into the last four with a five-wicket. They needed to pass only 193 for seven and did so with 10 balls to spare, on the back of half-centuries from Stephen Fleming (50) and Scott Styris (56).

"It's great that we picked ourselves up after the last game (against Sri Lanka)," McCullum told Sky Sports 2. "With the overcast conditions the toss was pretty crucial. We knew there was always going to be a window there and the way the guys bowled was fantastic, it gave us a chance to exploit it."

He added: "We've bounced back after the last game. We kept pressure on them with the ball and chasing 190 on this sort of pitch was a pleasure to do."

South Africa captain Graeme Smith told Sky Sports 2: "The first 20 overs were tough to bat in and they (New Zealand) exploited it superbly.

"They controlled a lot of our innings. Getting a decent total on the board was difficult and I thought we did well to drag it out.

"If we could have got 220 or 230 we would have had a real chance but under 200 was probably not enough. It comes down to England, a big crunch game which it was always going to be."

His opposite number Stephen Fleming admitted the conditions had been crucial.

"It helped a lot. We made mistakes in the last game but we got it right," he said.

"We had to use the conditions well and getting two early wickets was crucial."