The Proteas have an opportunity to become the first South African men's team to make a Cricket World Cup final when they play Australia in the semifinal on Thursday, 16 November.

South Africa take on Australia in the second Cricket World Cup semifinal at Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Thursday, 16 November -- the third time the two sides meet in a World Cup semifinal.

In 1999, the sides played to a tie, but Australia went through to the final by virtue of finishing higher in the Super Six stage of the tournament.

In 2007, the Aussies smashed South Africa by seven wickets. On both occasions, Australia went on to win the tournament, while South Africa are still in search of their first final appearance.

"The way we've performed as a team it's obviously created a lot of positive sentiment but obviously high expectations," Proteas skipper Temba Bavuma said at the pre-match press conference.

"A lot of people believe that this could be the year that we see ourselves in the final. And I mean, look, as a team [and] individually we'd like nothing better than that."

Bavuma acknowledged that the Proteas will face an experienced Australian side.

"We're not coming up against a Mickey Mouse team," the captain said. "Australia have a lot of experience and confidence in knockout games like this, so we've got to respect that....