South Africa wicket-keeper Quinton de Kock who played both Indian Premier League (IPL) 2019 final and World Cup 2015 semifinal has rated the former more emotional than the latter.

The Proteas were defeated against New Zealand in the World Cup 2015 semifinal. Emotions were running high and the South African players were seen breaking down after the loss.

But still, De Kock felt the IPL final this year was something he never experienced before. "The second most at the moment. Obviously the IPL final this year was up there. But then, Eden Park obviously...Auckland, it was pretty intense. I experienced it for the first time ever, that vibe that was going through the stadium. It was so noisy. (I was) just trying to concentrate, but it was tough to deal with it," he said.

South Africa isn't performing well this World Cup. They have won only one match till now and currently struggling to stay in the contest. When they will face New Zealand on Wednesday it will be a do-or-die game.

"Tomorrow is a quarter-final, I guess you could say it. But if we do win it, it's another big game again... We have to win all the games, not just focus on tomorrow," De Kock said.

New Zealand is undefeated like India and they will be a tough opponent for South Africa. "During the course of the tournament, obviously after losing all the time, there’s always a bit of a slump in being mentally strong. It' a long, tough tournament and getting a win has given us high hopes," the wicketkeeper added.

South Africa are a good side and can't be undermined. De Kock wants to rebuild faith among each other in the team. "We’re a successful ODI team anyway over the years. So we don’t need to change anything. It just becomes a mental game at the World Cup, trying to deal with the pressures," he added.

(With India Today Inputs)