Johannesburg: New Zealand captain Daniel Vettori has urged his team to go one step further in the ICC Champions Trophy following their exuberant show so far in the tournament sealing a semi-final clash against Pakistan on Friday.
"It is about time we made a final. There is a lot of determination in the group when we come to these tournaments and there is an expectation of us as a One-day team," The New Zealand Herald quoted Vettori, as saying.
"We have had a pretty good One-day team over the years. Now, it is up to us to deliver a little bit more than that. We know when we get to a semi-final it could be anyone's day and we are just hoping it is ours," he added.
New Zealand's progress is also remarkable for the fact that they had to deal with injuries of some key players including fast bowler Daryl Tuffey - who broke his hand, opener Jesse Ryder - who suffered a groin injury batting against Sri Lanka and all rounder Jacob Oram - with a hamstring injury.
New Zealand's win in their must-win Group B match against England also secured an extra day's rest for the team and another match at the Wanderers, a venue which suits the fast bowlers.
"We are fortunate enough to have the later semi-final now. So, that helps us," Vettori said.
"And, to be honest, 99 per cent of the wickets we play on are featherbeds. So, it is not a problem once in a while to have wickets, which challenge the batsmen. I don't have a problem with it at all," he added.
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