KEY POINTS:
Former New Zealand captain John Wright is waxing lyrical about Stephen Fleming's leadership and has singled out Scott Styris as the star batsman of the World Cup so far.
Wright, also the former India coach, said New Zealand's five-wicket win over South Africa on Sunday was the result
of detailed planning and excellent decision-making, and left his countrymen well placed to make a splash in the semifinals.
Styris' half century, his fifth in seven World Cup innings, Jeetan Patel's inspired spell of spin bowling and paceman James Franklin's improving form all caught the eye of Wright, as did the increasingly influential hand from Fleming.
Now safely through to the semifinals, New Zealand will play their last second-round game against Australia at Grenada's National Stadium on Saturday, but may not know their semifinal opponent or venue until after Sunday's England-West Indies contest.
Wright, commenting for the Cricinfo website, said the New Zealanders had obviously crossed their t's and dotted their i's in the lead-up to the match against South Africa.
"New Zealand-South Africa clashes have traditionally been close-fought affairs, but not this time. The victory appeared to be set up by some very thorough and thoughtful preparation [such as] the move to replace Mark Gillespie with Patel and the correct decision by Fleming to bowl first when he won the toss."
Fleming had blundered in the earlier match when he opted to bat first against Sri Lanka after winning the toss, and decided against playing Patel to give paceman Mark Gillespie a run.
"Sometimes these minor details can be overlooked when you have a big win but it's all about preparation and being accurate, so that you place yourself in the best possible position," continued Wright. "On this occasion Fleming got it right on both counts.
"The Kiwis will be pleased with the form of Franklin and Patel. They both did very well and will gain confidence as they move towards important matches later in the tournament. If conditions suit, New Zealand shouldn't have any hesitation in playing two spinners again."
But Wright saved his highest praise for Fleming and Styris, who have underpinned New Zealand's batting performance throughout the tournament, on pitches not always conducive to free-scoring strokeplay.
Styris, who Wright said had "really been the player of the tournament for me so far", has now scored 435 runs at 108.75 (strikerate 80.85). Fleming has posted 340 runs at 48.57 (85.85), while appealing as the most switched-on captain at the tournament.