ICC Cricket World Cup 2015, 1st semi-final: South Africa vs New Zealand - As it happened...

New Delhi: Welcome to our live cricket blog for the 1st semi-final between New Zealand and South Africa at Auckland. Follow live score and all the latest match updates here:

In a nerve-wrecking 1st semi-fianl clash of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015, South Africa choked once again as New Zealand beat them by four wickets to book a berth in the finals. With a match-winning knock of 84, Elliott emerged as the hero for the Black Caps. 

New Zealand Innings

Over 42.5 || Score 299/6

NZ need 12 runs off six balls to reach the finals of the coveted event. Single off the first ball. Elliott on strike. Another single. Steyn is facing some problem, may be a hamstring. Off the next came a boundary as Vettori played the ball towards point region. Single off the next. Elliott smacked the ball for a six over long on as South Africa choked once again in ICC's coveted event.    

Over 42 || Score 286/6

Morkel to bowl the penultimate over of the match. Four runs came off the first three balls. Single off the next. Boundary off the fifth towards cover region from the bat of Elliott. Double off the last. 11 from the over.

Over 41 || Score 275/6

Steyn picked up the wicket of Ronchi off his first ball. The game is still on. South Africa missed another run-out. Veteran Daniel Vettori is the new man to the crease. Excellent over by the strike bowler as five runs came off it. 23 runs needed off 12 balls.

L Ronchi c Rossouw b Steyn 8 (7b)

Over 40 || Score 269/5

Tahir to bowl the over. Ronchi hit a boundary off the 4th ball as seven runs came in the over. 29 runs needed off 18 balls. 

Over 39 || Score 263/5

AB to continue. Off the 4th ball, Elliott pulled the bowler for a six over mid-wicket. Ten from the over as the equation has come down to 36 runs from 24 balls.

Over 38 || Score 252/5

Morkel with his 8th over. SA still have an outside chance in the match. The game is still on. Corey Out! In trying to hit the bowler out of the park, Corey gave a skier to Faf and he did not mistake this time. 46 runs needed off 30 balls. 

CJ Anderson c du Plessis b Morkel 58 (57b)  

Over 37 || Score 251/4

AB has come once again to bowl the over. In the last ball came a boundary towards square leg from Corey's willow. 8 runs from the over. 47 runs needed from 36 balls. 

Over 36 || Score 243/4

Now South African bowlers would be under immense pressure as NZ have both their set batsmen in the middle. Corey cut Tahir off the first ball to get a boundary. In the next ball hard-hitter took a single to complete his fifty off 47 balls. Off the fourth ball, Elliott too completed his half-century in style by hitting the bowler for a four towards extra covers. Good over for NZ as 12 came from it. 55 runs needed from 42 balls.  

Over 35 || Score 231/4

Elliott launched Morkel for a six over square leg off the first ball. In the fifth ball, Corey got a boundary towards long off. 12 from the over. 67 runs needed off 48 balls.

Over 34 || Score 219/4

SA have to break this partnership. Steyn on attack. The match is going to the wire. Decent over by the pacer. NZ need 79 runs off 54 balls to seal the match and they have six wickets in hand.  

Over 33 || Score 213/4

Batting Powerplay. And it will be off four overs. First ball, and Corey slapped it towards long off for a boundary. But a superb comeback by Morne as he bowled four dot balls after that before taking a single off the last.      

Over 32 || Score 208/4

AB missed a golden chance to run out Elliot. Will be the turning point of the match? Good over by the speedster as five came off it.  

Over 31 || Score 203/4

Here comes AB to roll his arm. What an inspirational skipper he has been for the Proteas. He gave three runs off his first four balls. Two runs off the next two. Last ball was a dot one. Superb over first up the skipper. In the meanwhile, NZ crossed the 200-run mark.

Over 30 || Score 199/4

Steyn is back. Good contest between bat and ball. 50-run partnership between Elliot and Corey. Excellent over by the speedster. Three from the over. 99 runs needed from 13 overs.   

Over 29 || Score 196/4

Duminy to bowl. Three runs in the first three overs. Single off the next. Double of the 5th ball from Corey's willow. In the last he sent the full-toss out of the park. 13 runs from the over. 102 runs needed from 14 overs. It can still be anyone's game. 

Over 28 || Score 183/4

This partnership is quite crucial for the Black Caps. Tahir with his 7th over. Tahir is hardly offering any room for the batsmen to go for big hits. Another good over by the spinner. Four off the over.

Over 27 || Score 179/4

In the fourth ball, Elliot played an expensive drive towards cover region to get a boundary. But that was the only bad ball in the over as five runs came in it.

Over 26 || Score 174/4

Tahir is mixing up his deliveries well. In fact he is deceiving the batsmen with his pace and turn. Excellent over by the leggie as he gave mere a single in it.   

Over 25 || Score 173/4

Corey is now trying to up the ante as he smacked Philander for a maximum over mid-wicket in the last ball. NZ need lot of such shots to seal the match. Eight runs came in the over.

Over 24 || Score 165/4

Anderson is middling the ball well. SA have to pick all the Kiwi wickets if they want to win the match. Good over for NZ as both the batsmen collected a boundary each to add ten more runs to their total.

Over 23 || Score 155/4

Dangerous Corey Anderson has come to the middle. Off the 5th ball he played a superb straight drive to get his first boundary of the match. And that was the only scoring shot in the over. 

Over 22 || Score 151/4

Ross Taylor Out! Duminy picked up the big wicket. It was a soft dismissal. Ball was going down the leg side, Ross tried to play it fine but only managed a thick edge of his bat and wicketkeeper took a sharp catch behind the wickets.  

LRPL Taylor c de Kock b Duminy 30 (39b)

Over 20 || Score 143/3

Attacking filed for Tahir as they are trying to create some pressure on the new batsman Elliott. Three runs from the over.

Over 19 || Score 140/3

Steyn has been brought back into the attack. Another tight over for South Africa. Pressure is building up on the Black Caps. NZ need 158 runs from 24 overs and they have seven wicket in hand.   

Over 18 || Score 133/3

Guptill run out! This is the last thing NZ would have wanted. In trying to steal a single, he fell well short of his crease. Grant Elliott is the new man in.

MJ Guptill run out 34 (38b) 

Over 17 || Score 128/2

Philander to continue. Both the batsmen collected a boundary each in the first three balls. Two runs off the next two balls. And a single in the last as 12 runs were conceded in the over. 

Over 16 || Score 116/2

Tahir is playing a crucial role here for the Proteas. In fact, AB has thus far used his bowlers quite intelligently. Three runs off it.

Over 15 || Score 113/2

Cheap over by Philander as he gave mere a single in it. Pressure is increasing on the batsmen with every passing over. 

Over 14 || Score 112/2

Now Guptill and Taylor have to take the mantle to steady the innings from here on. Both are senior pros in the team and have been in this situation earlier as well. In the meanwhile, Tahir is back. Good over by the leggie as he conceded five runs in it. 

Over 13 || Score 107/2

Philander ready to bowl his 3rd spell. Tight comeback over by the pacer. Three runs came in it.

Over 12 || Score 104/2

Guptill launched Duminy for a maximum over long on as NZ crossed the 100-run mark. The spinner leaked ten run in the over.

Over 11 || Score 94/2

Taylor and Guptill are in the middle for NZ. Morkel with his 4th over. Guptill cut the third ball towards point region to get a boundary. Six runs in the over.   

Over 10 || Score 88/2

JP Duminy has been given the ball. And the offie conceded seven runs in his opening over. 

Over 9 || Score 81/2

Morkel with his 3rd over. In the 4th ball, Willianson pulled the bowler for a boundary towards square leg. Williamson Out! He tried to play the same shot but this time got the thick inside edge of his bat and the ball crashed into his stumps. Big blow for NZ. 

KS Williamson b Morkel 6 (11b)  

Over 8 || Score 77/1

Philander has been brought back into the attack as McCullum is back in the hut. Good thinking by AB. In the 2nd last ball came a boundary as Guptill flicked the bowler towards square leg.

Over 7 || Score 72/1

McCullum Out! Morkel gave SA the much needed breakthrough. The right-hander came down the track to hit the bowler over long on but this time couldn't connect it well and gave a simple catch to Steyn inside the circle. Kane Willimson is the new man to the center. One run came off it along with the crucial wicket.

BB McCullum c Steyn b Morkel 59 (26b)

Over 6 || Score 71/0

Spin for the first time. Imran Tahir has come to bowl. He has been exceptional for his team thus far in the tournament. Big LBW appeal against Guptill. Umpire said not out! Referral taken by the fielding side. But it goes against the Proteas. Good over first up by the leggie as he bowled a maiden.      

Over 5 || Score 71/0

Steyn to continue. First ball, SIX. McCullum is on a roll here. He is dealing in boundaries and sixes at the moment. In the third ball he hit another six to complete his fifty off mere 22 balls with the help of six fours and four sixes. Off the next came another boundary, down the leg side. Then came another four, towards cover region. Rain of boundaries and sixes. Big big over as 25 runs have come in it.    

Over 4 || Score 46/0

First bowling change. Morne Morkel has been introduced. McCullum welcomed him with a boundary off his first ball. The swashbuckling opener then pulled the bowler towards mid-wicket to get one more boundary off the 4th ball. In the last ball came another boundary but this time from Guptill's willow. 14 runs off the over.   

Over 3 || Score 32/0

Steyn is bowling at a good pace and is looking in rhythm as well. Off the fifth ball, McCullum collected his 3rd boundary by hitting the bowler over long off. Six from the over.  

Over 2 || Score 26/0

First ball, too short and it sailed over the wicket-keepers head to cross the boundary rope. Off the next came a six over square leg from McCullum's willow. Boundary in the next. Then came another boundary towards square leg as McCullum pulled the bowler off the last ball. 18 runs from the over.    

Vernon Philander has the other new ball in hand.

Over 1 || Score 8/0

Guptill took a single as NZ opened their account off the first ball. Off the fourth ball, McCullum smacked the bowler for a six over extra covers. Eight from the over.   

Deadly Dale Steyn set to bowl the first over of the innings as Guptill and McCullum have come to open the innings for the Black Caps. 

South Africa have scored 281 runs as the adjusted target for NZ to achieve has reached to 298 in 43 overs.

South Africa Innings

Over 43 || Score 281/5

This is the final over of South African innings. Corey Anderson to bowl the last over. Miller smacked the first ball for a six over long on. Miller Out! In the next ball he edged the ball to the wicket-keeper, who took a simple catch. His fine whirlwind knock of 49 has finally come to an end. JP Duminy is new man to the crease. Off the 4th ball he get a boundary towards cover region. Four runs came off the last two ball.    

DA Miller c Ronchi b Anderson 49 (18b) 

Over 42 || Score 266/4

Southee to bowl the over. Boundary off the first ball. Both the batsmen are targeting the short straight fence. Good over by the strike bowler as he gave mere seven runs in it. 

Over 41 || Score 259/4

Anderson with his 5th over. First ball, another boundary from the willow of Miller. Next was a wide as it was too short to play. Miller then hit two consecutive sixes in the 4th and 5th ball as 20 runs came in the over. Miller has quickly reached to 38 off 13 balls with the help of 5 fours and two sixes.   

Over 40 || Score 239/4

Southee with his 8th over. First ball, Miller collected two consecutive boundaries off the first two balls. Third was a bouncer, no run. Off the next came another boundary towards extra covers. Boundaries are raining at the moment as in the fifth came another one, this time straight down the ground. Big over for SA as 17 came off it.   

Over 39 || Score 222/4

Corey Anderson is set to bowl the over. Faf Out! In trying to pull the bowler towards square leg, he gave a simple catch to the wicket-keeper off the 2nd ball. Though original decision was not out but in referral it was out. David Miller has come to the middle. Excellent over by the seamer, six runs came off it.  

F du Plessis c Ronchi b Anderson 82 (107b) 

Both the batsmen -- AB and Faf have come to the middle. 

Play will resume at 6.45pm local time, 43 overs per side. #SA currently 216-3 after 38. LIVE http://t.co/ocurXQtyKm #NZvSA — Cricket World Cup (@cricketworldcup) March 24, 2015

Now the match has been reduced to 43 overs a side. It means South Africa now mere have five more overs to bat.

The match will resume within 15 minutes from now.

Finally a good news for the cricket lovers, rain has stopped and groundsmen are working hard to handover the ground swiftly.

Sun has come out but it's still drizzling here at Auckland.

If in case South Africa are not able to bat, and if only 20 overs possible New zealand's target is 166 #NZvSA #CWC15 #BingPredicts #DimagSay — Mohandas Menon (@mohanstatsman) March 24, 2015

Their is a reserve day tomorrow for this match, in case the match can't be completed today.  

Not a good news for cricket lovers as the rain has not stopped yet.

Rain has interrupted the play. Players are going out of the ground as covers are coming in. 

Over 38 || Score 216/3

Boult with his 9th over. Boult is mixing up his deliveries. Both the batsmen collected a boundary each in the over as the speedster leaked 12 runs in it.

Over 37 || Score 214/3

Southee is back into the attack. Off the first five balls came four runs. In the meanwhile, SA have crossed the 200-run mark. Tight over by the strike bowler as he conceded five runs in it.

Over 36 || Score 199/3

Batting powerplay! Off the third ball he slapped Henry for a flat six over cow corner, immediately after being dropped off the last ball. He then hit two consecutive boundaries to complete his fifty off 32 balls. 15 runs came in the over.   

Over 35 || Score 184/3

AB guided the ball between wicket-keeper and 2nd slip to get a boundary in the last ball. Nine from the over.  

Over 34 || Score 175/3

Now the boundaries are coming at regular intervals for South Africa. Corey Anderson is back into the attack. In the third ball, Faf pulled the bowler towards cow corner to collect his 6th boundary. Off the last ball AB played the same shot in the same area to get another boundary. Poor bowling by the seamer. 13 from the over. Now the momentum is shifting towards the Proteas.      

Over 33 || Score 162/3

Henry set to bowl the over. Two boundaries came from AB's willow, both straight down the ground. He is utilizing the short straight boundaries with good effect. Another good over as 11 runs came in it.  

Over 32 || Score 151/3

Vettori with his penultimate over. Off the third ball came a lucky boundary for Faf as he got the thick edge of his bat and the ball ran towards fine third man. Off the fifth ball, AB got his first boundary by slapping the bowler straight down the ground. And with that South Africa have crossed the 150-run mark. 11 in the over.

Over 31 || Score 140/3

Now Henry has been given the ball. McCullim is juggling his bowlers at the moment. Faf completed his fifty in the over. And then he charged the bowler down the ground to hit a six. 11 from the over.

Over 30 || Score 129/3

Vettori with his 8th over. AB tried to made some room to hit a boundary in the over but Vettori's impeccable line and length has forced him to keep quiet. Four from the over.  

Over 29 || Score 125/3

Strike bowler Boult is back into the attack. It means McCullum wants one more wicket here. What an attacking skipper he is. Good comeback over by the speedster as he conceded three runs in it. 

Over 28 || Score 122/3

Vettori with his 7th over. He has been exceptional in this World Cup, and has repaid the faith and trust shown by the New Zealand cricket board. Six runs from the over.  

Over 27 || Score 116/3

Corey Anderson strikes! Rossouw Out. Anderson known for breaking the partnership has enhanced his reputation by picking up a wicket in his first over. In trying to hit the bowler over point region the southpaw found Guptill in the middle, who took a blinder. Superman, AB is the new man in.  

RR Rossouw c Guptill b Anderson 39 (53b)     

Over 25 || Score 108/2

Another bowling change. Medium pacer Grant Elliott has been given the ball to roll his arm for the first time in the match. In the meanwhile, South Africa have crossed the 100-run mark. In the 4th ball, Rossouw smacked the bowler for a six straight down the ground. Nine runs from the over.  

Over 24 || Score 99/2

Both the batsmen are dealing in single and doubles at the moment and are hitting the odd loose balls for the boundaries. Five singles from the over along with a wide.  

Over 23 || Score 93/2

McCullum has now introduced part-time offie Kane Williamson into the attack. Both the batsmen are playinng sensibly in the middle. Decent over first up by the spinner as he gave five runs in it.  

Over 22 || Score 88/2

Vettori is finishing his overs quickly from one end. Another swift over by the experienced campaigner. Three runs from the over.  

Over 21 || Score 85/2

50-run partnership between Faf and Rilee for the third wicket. Off the third ball, Faf came down the track to charge Southee over long off to get a boundary. In the last ball too the right-hander player a straight drive down the ground to collect another boundary as eight runs came in it.   

Over 20 || Score 77/2

Another tight over by Vettori as a single came off it. South Africa have to up the ante a bit as they are scoring runs at a run-rate of 3.85.

Over 19 || Score 76/2

Now the partnership between Faf and Rilee for the third wicket has reached the 45-run mark. Five runs off the over as Rossouw collected a boundary off the fifth ball.  

Over 18 || Score 71/2

Vettori to continue. First ball, wide down the leg side and wicket-keeper also missed it as five runs came from it. That was the only poor ball by the spinner. Seven from the over.  

Over 17 || Score 64/2

Henry with his 5th over. Shane Bond, the bowling coach of NZ, must be happy with the bowlers effort thus far in the match, in fact in the entire tournament. Henry is bowling on just a perfect line and length. Three runs from the over. 

Over 16 || Score 61/2

Bowling change! Now comes the senior veteran player in the Kiwi squad, Daniel Vettori. Impressive over first up by the left-arm spinner as he gave mere two runs in it. 

Over 15 || Score 58/2

There is no need to panic for the South Africans as they have a depth in their batting. In the meanwhile another tight over by Henry. Three runs from the over. 

Over 14 || Score 55/2

Boult with his 7th over. Now that's an attacking captaincy by McCullum. Off the third ball, Rilee Rossouw played a superb straight drive to collect a boundary. In the meanwhile, South Africa have crossed the 50-run mark. Finally a good over for the Proteas as 12 runs came from it.  

Over 13 || Score 43/2

Henry bowled 2nd consecutive maiden. Now the pressure is building up on the South African batsmen.   

Over 12 || Score 43/2

Excellent cricket thus far by the home side. NZ seamers are offering no room to the batsmen to free their arms. In the last two overs came mere four runs as the 11th over bowled by Matt Henry was a maiden.

Over 10 || Score 39/2

In the 4th ball, Faf guided the fine towards third man to collect his 2nd boundary of the innings. Single off the last ball as five runs came from it. First ten overs belonged to the Black Caps as they sent both the openers back to the hut.  

Over 9 || Score 34/2

First bowling change! Matt Henry, who has replaced injured Milne, has been introduced into the attack. Rilee Rossouw has joined Faf in the middle after the fall of 2nd wicket. South African batsmen are looking nervous in the middle as they taking some risky singles. Good over first up by the speedster as he conceded mere three in it. 

Over 8 || Score 31/2

Boult strikes again! South Africa lost another opener De Kock. Trying to break the shackles, De Kock came down the track to hit the ball over third man, but couldn't connect it well and Southee took a simple catch near the boundary rope. 

Q de Kock c Southee b Boult 14 (17b) 

Over 7 || Score 30/1

Superb start once again with the ball by the Kiwis. And this has been the key to success for them in this tournament. Southee is trying to pitch the ball up to extract as much swing as possible -- good thinking by the bowler. Another tight over as three runs came from it. 

Over 6 || Score 27/1

Boult is bowling at a good pace, angling the ball well and is mixing up his line and length. Faf and De Kock are in the middle at the moment for South Africa. Fine over by the speedster as one run came from it.    

Over 5 || Score 26/1

Southee with his third over. Tight over by the seamer as he conceded mere a single from it.   

Over 4 || Score 25/1

Amla Out! Boult gave Kiwis their first breakthrough. He bowled a full length delivery, Amla went for a drive, got the inside edge of his bat and the ball crashed into the stumps. Big wicket for Black Caps early on. Faf du Plessis is the new man in, who collected a boundary towards the square leg off the last ball. 

HM Amla b Boult 10 (14b) 

Over 3 || Score 20/0

In the last two balls Amla collected two boundaries, both on the on-side to get ten runs from the over. NZ speedsters should stick with the off-stump line.   

Over 2 || Score 10/0

Off the second ball, came a shaky boundary from the bat of De Kock as the ball ran away towards the fine third man. Boult is swinging the ball away for the left-hander. De Kock dropped by the wicket-keeper Ronchi as the southpaw got his 2nd boundary of the match. He is living dangerously in the middle.    

Trent Boult is set to bowl from the other end.

Over 1 || Score 0/0

Southee is right on the money from the word go. While seasoned opener Amla too is showing a straight bat. This is a super contest between bat and bowl. It's a maiden over first up.    

Monk like Hashim Amla has come to the middle along with De Kock to open the innings for South Africa. Tim Southee to open the proceedings for the home side.  

It's going to be a cracker of a match. Big occasion for both the teams as they have never reached to the finals of the marquee event. 

It's time for the National Anthems. 

Surprisingly, South Africa have dropped Kyle Abbott for this match and he is being replaced by Vernon Philander. 

Toss: South Africa have won the toss and elected to bat first. 

New Zealand and South Africa clash in the World Cup semi-finals at Auckland`s Eden Park on Tuesday hoping to end years of pain and near-misses.

Both sides, who between them have appeared in nine semi-finals without reaching the final, have met expectations by making the last four.

Lying in wait will be the winner of Thursday`s second semi-final in Sydney between India, defending the title they won in 2011, and Australia, who lifted the three preceding World Cups.

New Zealand have lost all six of their previous World Cup semi-finals, with South Africa falling at the same hurdle on three occasions.

But New Zealand coach Mike Hesson said he did not expect either side to be weighed down by past failures.

Their one common opponent in the tournament has been the West Indies, who South Africa clobbered in pool play by 257 runs after batting first and posting 408 for five.

New Zealand beat the West Indies by 143 runs in a Wellington quarter-final on Saturday after scoring 393 for six on the back of Martin Guptill`s World Cup record 237 not out .

South Africa emerged from their quarter-final against Sri Lanka with an overwhelming nine-wicket victory as they moved to dispel talk they are "chokers".

And the star batsman was adamant that, whatever else happened, his side would not crack under pressure.

Proteas leg-spinner Imran Tahir`s four for 26 against Sri Lanka should raise a red flag for New Zealand`s talismanic opener and captain Brendon McCullum, whose swash-buckling reputation carries a postscript that he is vulnerable to leggies.When New Zealand and South Africa met in a pre-tournament hit out, Trent Boult took five for 51 in a 134-run win over a Proteas side without key figures Hashim Amla and Dale Steyn.

South Africa won an one-day international series 2-0 against New Zealand without Kane Williamson and Ross Taylor late last year, and Hesson said that result was further skewed by South Africa being in full flight while New Zealand were just gearing up for the season.

It was the start of a build-up that has seen New Zealand hit form at the right time with wins in their past nine games -- they have never won 10 in a row -- while South Africa were beaten by Pakistan in World Cup pool play.

Their crunch showdown takes place at Eden Park, whose drop-in pitch and short boundaries ought to favour batsmen, but where results show the 300 mark has been bettered only six times in ODIs.

Between them, New Zealand and South Africa provide half of the top 10 bowlers at this World Cup.

Boult is the leading wicket-taker with 19 and is joined by fellow Kiwis Daniel Vettori and Tim Southee with 15 scalps, the same as Tahir, while South Africa fast bowler Morne Morkel has 14.

Guptill, coming into form with back-to-back centuries is the second-highest run scorer with 498, with de Villiers in fourth place, a further 81 runs further back.

Although the bookmakers have South Africa as favourites, New Zealand have come out on top the last three times the teams have clashed at a World Cup.

However, the Black Caps were handed a setback on Monday when fast bowler Adam Milne was ruled out of the tournament with a left heel injury.

Late call-up Matt Henry will duel with seasoned international Kyle Mills and Mitchell McClenaghan to take Milne`s place.

Match Officials

Umpires: Ian Gould(Eng), Rod Tucker(Aus)
Third Umpire: Nigel Llong(Eng)
Match Referee: David Boon(Aus)

New Zealand Squad

Brendon McCullum, Martin Guptill, Kane Williamson, Ross Taylor, Grant Elliott, Corey Anderson, Luke Ronchi, Daniel Vettori, Tim Southee, Matt Henry, Trent Boult, Kyle Mills, Nathan McCullum, Tom Latham, Mitchell McClenaghan

South Africa Squad

Hashim Amla, Quinton de Kock, Faf du Plessis, AB de Villiers, Rilee Rossouw, David Miller, Jean-Paul Duminy, Dale Steyn, Kyle Abbott, Morne Morkel, Imran Tahir, Vernon Philander, Farhaan Behardien, Aaron Phangiso, Wayne Parnell