We believe we are going to go all the way: AB de Villiers

Now that South Africa have broken their knockout jinx in a World Cup following their thumping nine-wicket win against Sri Lanka in Sydney on Wednesday, captain AB de Villiers thinks his side is set to win its maiden trophy.

South Africa, who went into the match with the dubious distinction of having never won a knockout game in World Cups, were on the money from the first ball and shot Sri Lanka out for 133 with spinners Imran Tahir and JP Duminy, who became the first Proteas player to take a World Cup hat-trick, sharing seven wickets between. Chasing an innocuous total, the Proteas got over the line in 18 overs and the chase also saw Quinton de Kock's return to from as he scored 78 not out off 59 balls.

De Villiers said his men were mentally ready for this game and that showed in the way they played. "I didn't have to say much, we were very motivated for this game. The guys were in a really good space and they rocked up mentally," the Proteas captain said in the post-match presentation.

However, when the coin fell in Sri Lanka's favour and they decided to bat first on a pitch that is known to favour subcontinental teams, de Villiers looked a bit tense. But Kyle Abbott, who replaced the hamstrung Vernon Philander, removed Kusal Perera in the second over to set the tone for a great bowling performance. "I was going to bat first but I would have backed the batters to do a good job out there. It was incredible the job the bowlers did up front," he said.

"They [spinners] came in at a crucial stage, we kept them back until the 14-15th over, so for the two of them to come on against a subcontinental team at a crucial stage was really impressive."

De Villiers was also happy for de Kock who came into the match under tremendous pressure following scores of 7,7,12,1, 0 and 26. "He's been going through a tough time, you go through patches in your career, the coaches kept backing him, for him to pull it off with a really special knock and a couple of catches. "

And it was then that de Villiers said what should greatly disturb at least South Africa's semi-final opponents - the winners of the match between New Zealand and West Indies at Wellington on March 21. "I'm quietly confident, I like to believe in big things. I truly believe we're going to go all the way. For now we're just going to enjoy a beer and think about what's to come."