Stephen Fleming's demand for more international respect might have gained at least a foothold yesterday after New Zealand became the first team to qualify for the semifinals of the Champions Trophy tournament in India.

Aggrieved at the lack of recognition his team received for their efforts on the international scene, Fleming yesterday went a long way towards backing up his statement with a man-of-the-match performance against Pakistan.

Fleming, who overtook Arjuna Ranatunga's record of 193 ODIs as skipper when the Pool B showdown began at Mohali, set up New Zealand's 51-run win with an intelligent 80, before pulling all the right strings in the field.

The win means New Zealand are now guaranteed of qualifying for next week's semifinals, and pressing for a repeat of their epic mini World Cup triumph at Nairobi six years previous.

Fleming yesterday hailed a grand team effort; the win coming on the back of some excellent batting from himself, Scott Styris, Jacob Oram and Brendon McCullum, and some demanding bowling from Kyle Mills, Oram, Vettori and - eventually - fast-bowler Shane Bond.

Fleming and Styris repaired the innings with a fourth-wicket stand worth 108 after New Zealand had slumped to 60 for three, and Styris continued on to share in a 52-run partnership with Oram.

New Zealand cashed in on the rare top-order stability, smashing 89 runs off the last eight overs, as Oram helped himself to 31 off 26 balls, and McCullum to 27 off just 13.

It has to be said that Pakistan's bowling and fielding were almost unbelievably poor during the final stanzas; the bowlers delivering only one attempted yorker in the last 10 overs, and the outfielders making numerous errors.

Fleming, who bemoaned the lack of respect for New Zealand before the start of the tournament, told Radio Sport yesterday that he couldn't be happier with the way the match progressed.

"I'm very proud of that performance," he said. "It was everything we could have asked for. They're a tough team to play, especially in India.

"We were able to withstand some pretty bowler-friendly conditions early on, launch a good partnership and get some momentum with our hitters later on.

"We had a few concerns midway through the defence, but brought the strike-bowlers back and they did the job."

Fleming said the influence of the middle-to-lower order only demonstrated how effectively New Zealand's batting line-up could be if one or two players at the top laid a platform for the more aggressive batsmen to come.