IN three years, South Africa has reached an ODI World Cup semi-final in India, the T20 World Cup final in the Caribbean and now the semi-final of the ongoing ICC Champions Trophy in Pakistan.
For a country that was known for its poor performances in ICC events, despite not winning any ICC trophy, the achievements of the past three years have certainly changed the narrative completely.
Having been involved in each of the country's achievements, Proteas slow-left-arm Orthodox Keshav Maharaj emphasised that the new generation has no mental scars whatsoever, a feat that haunted the past generations in ICC events.
The 35-year-old emphasised that the new generation of players are motivated to bring trophies back to South Africa.
"Look, that's past generations and we are the more recent generation. I think we've had quite a significant amount of success since then as a nation," said Maharaj.
"This team as well, when we've played together as a unit, we've got to the semi-final previously in the ICC World Cup, then the final of the T20 World Cup and now we are looking at another semi-final.
"I think the guys are motivated rather than anything. We can't dwell on what's happened in the past but we can pave the way forward."
Having topped Group B with a flawless record, South Africa could find themselves having to board a plane to Dubai to take on India in the semi-final or travel to Lahore to take on the Blackcaps.
Having played all their group games at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium, India will certainly have an advantage having been exposed to the conditions more and having carefully selected their squad specifically for Dubai.
On the other hand, meeting the Blackcaps in the semi-final could pose its own threats. After all, the Blackcaps have beaten South Africa on multiple occasions in ICC events. Despite all this, Maharaj told the media that they don't mind who they play or where they play in the semi-final.
"To me, it doesn't matter. It's just to make sure that we turn up on the day and execute our skills and come out on the right side of things," he said.
"We're here to win the tournament, whoever we're posed with in terms of venues, we just want to play and execute our skills."
The semi-finals of the Champions Trophy are scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday, with the final set for Sunday, March 9.