Preview: New Zealand vs South Africa – T20 World Cup Semi-Final Prediction, Teams, Venue, Start Time

A place in the T20 World Cup final will be confirmed when South Africa take on New Zealand in the semi-finals in Kolkata on Wednesday.

The winner will face either England or India in the final at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Sunday.

match preview

South Africa never looked back after defeating Afghanistan after two super overs in their second group game on 11 February.

The Proteas finished the group stage with an impressive seven-wicket win over New Zealand and a six-wicket success against the United Arab Emirates, before they opened the Super Eights with an impressive 76-run win over tournament co-hosts India.

They then made it to the semi-finals with an emphatic nine-wicket win over West Indies in their second match of the Super Eights stage.

With a place in the last four secured, Aiden Markram's men chased down Zimbabwe's target of 154 in under 18 overs to maintain their 100% record in the tournament.

Buoyed by the disappointment of finishing runners-up in 2024, South Africa know they are just two wins away from winning their first T20 World Cup.

They defeated Afghanistan at this stage of the tournament two years ago, although they had faced disappointment in their first two semi-finals in 2009 and 2014.

Unlike their opponents, New Zealand faced a nervous wait to find out whether they had done enough to book a place in the semi-finals.

After winning three of their four group games, Mitchell Santner's team had their first Super Eight match against Pakistan abandoned without a single ball being bowled.

The Blackcaps followed that disappointing result with an impressive 61-run win over Sri Lanka, but suffered a four-wicket defeat against England on Friday.

New Zealand looked set to defend their score of 159 when they reduced Harry Brook's charges to 117–6, but an impressive seven-wicket partnership between Will Jacks and Rehan Ahmed kept England over the line.

That result opened the door for Pakistan to follow up with a big win over Sri Lanka, but the five-run win was not enough to catch New Zealand's strong net run rate.

The Blackcaps' focus is now squarely on Wednesday's semi-final, and although they have already lost to South Africa in this tournament, they can take some inspiration from the fact that they have won all three of their previous knockout games against the Proteas in ICC events.

team news

© Imago/Imago/ANI News

Kagiso Rabada, Marco Johnson and Keshav Maharaj are set to return to South Africa's bowling attack after being rested for the win against Zimbabwe.

There may be some concern over Ryan Rickleton's availability after he was hit on the helmet by a bouncer from Brad Evans on Sunday.

The 29-year-old was able to continue batting after passing preliminary concussion tests, so he should be fine to play in Wednesday's semi-final.

Markram would like to play captaincy innings, having scored 268 runs during the tournament at an impressive strike rate of 175.16.

As far as New Zealand is concerned, they will have to decide whether to keep faith in all-rounder Cole McConchie, who played the last two matches.

Jimmy Neesham is the obvious candidate to replace McConchie if the Blackcaps opt to make changes to their playing eleven.

The pressure will be on the opening pair of Tim Seifert and Finn Allen, who are New Zealand's top two scorers in the tournament with 405 runs between them.

Rachin Ravindra will come in at number three but may have a role with the left-arm spin after taking seven wickets in the last two matches.

South Africa team:

Aiden Markram (captain), Corbin Bosch, Dewald Brewis, Quinton de Kock (wk), David Miller, Kwena Mfaka, Marco Jensen, Anrich Nortje, Keshav Maharaj, Ryan Rickelton (wk), Jason Smith, Tristan Stubbs, George Linde, Kagiso Rabada, Lungi Ngidi.

New Zealand team:

Mitchell Santner (captain) Finn Allen, Mark Chapman, Devon Conway, Jacob Duffy, Lockie Ferguson, Matt Henry, Kyle Jamieson, Daryl Mitchell, James Neesham, Glenn Phillips, Rachin Ravindra, Tim Seifert, Ish Sodhi

T20 World Cup results

South Africa's tournaments so far

group stage:

vs canada: won by 57 runs

vs Afghanistan: won after the second super over

vs New Zealand: won by seven wickets

vs UAE: won by six wickets

Super Eight:

vs india: won by 76 runs

vs West Indies: won by nine wickets

vs Zimbabwe: won by five wickets

New Zealand's tournaments so far

group stage:

vs Afghanistan: won by five wickets

vs UAE: won by 10 wickets

vs South Africa: lost by seven wickets

vs canada: won by eight wickets

Super Eight:

vs pakistan: no results

vs Sri Lanka: won by 61 runs

vs England: lost by four wickets

Where will South Africa vs New Zealand take place?

The semi-final match will be played at Eden Gardens in Kolkata, which has already hosted six matches of the T20 World Cup.

However, South Africa and New Zealand are yet to play at the stadium in this tournament.

When does South Africa vs New Zealand start?

The semi-finals will start at 7pm local time, which means it will start at 1:30pm on Wednesday for UK viewers.

We say: South Africa will win

South Africa have made themselves the team to beat with their strong performances in the tournament and having already beaten New Zealand in the competition, we think they will come out on top again to secure their place in Sunday's final.