Smith promises to bounce back

Graeme Smith, South Africa's captain, arrived at Auckland today promising a change of fortune in their one-day series against New Zealand.

After a six-wicket defeat at Dunedin put them 3-1 down, South Africa have to win Saturday's match at Eden Park to stay in the series, and to avoid becoming the first South African team to lose any series against New Zealand.

However, Smith was in a defiant mood. "The games have been close and the series could be 2-2," he said."People are saying that New Zealand are playing at the top of their game, but the facts are that we're playing well below par, yet we've still been in most matches until the end. We're playing nowhere near the standard that we're used to, and need to improve urgently. But the good thing is, we've got lots of room for improvement."

Smith was careful not to downplay the achievements of New Zealand, who he said had played consistently well. "We've been outplayed in key departments throughout the series and at key times, but I don't think we've taken a step back," he said. "To be fair, New Zealand have played excellent cricket and they've played well in every game. But we know we can perform a lot better and maybe that's the biggest difference at this stage.

"We think we can bounce back, definitely. The boys want to do well, and that was certainly apparent when we sat in the dressing room last night and hearing the disappointment in the guys' voices."