Wary Aiden Markram keeps unbeaten South Africa grounded ahead of New Zealand semi-final

[p]The 2024 runners‑up are the only ‌unbeaten team, winning all seven matches, five of them in Ahmedabad, ‌and the victories include a seven-wicket thumping of [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/new-zealand/G6PWlrQB/"]New Zealand[/a] ‌in the group stage.[/p][p][b]"I wish cricket was that easy," [/b][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/markram-aiden/t2HJVWpB/"]Markram[/a], who has often set the tone for his team in the powerplay, said ‌with a wry smile at a press ⁠conference on Tuesday.[/p][p][b]"New Zealand is ‌a quality team, they've proved that over many years now.[/b][/p][p][b]"We had ​a good runout 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 that ​again."[/b][/p][embed guid="44a0cad3-8aae-44df-a5e3-2b21c7977cd3" url="https://x.com/ProteasMenCSA/status/2028508514600030376?s=20" social-type="twitter" /][p]Conditions at Eden Gardens are another variable. Markram said [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/south-africa/tUhlKzIm/"]South Africa[/a] studied [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/india/fcOzl2uI/"]India[/a]'s win over [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/west-indies/jTD1lMfO/"]West Indies[/a] on Sunday for clues and took a close look at the surface.[/p][p][b]"I briefly walked ‌out to the wicket. It looks pretty good again. I think it's the darker soil. So we'll have to not just wing it but come up with ways out in the middle after having seen a couple of balls… and back those plans from there."[/b][/p][p]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 [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/de-kock-quinton/x49jXCwB/"]‌Quinton de Kock[/a].[/p][embed guid="9897cafd-3c33-4bd9-9951-661fe6c3d4c5" url="https://x.com/ProteasMenCSA/status/2028410089002963371?s=20" social-type="twitter" /][p]"[b]I think it's more just around making really ​good decisions under pressure. We've got a lot of ‌good experience in the group.[/b][/p][p][b]"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."[/b][/p]