Scott Styris blitzed 45 off 27 balls and then removed both of South Africa's openers to set up a nail-biting New Zealand victory in the third one-day international at Wellington on Friday.

South Africa looked sure of victory twice in the game only for Styris to thwart them each time as the New Zealanders scraped home by five runs to go 2-1 up in the six-match series.

Graeme Smith's side almost stole the match in the last over when, with 27 needed, Shaun Pollock hit three sixes off four balls.

A fourth maximum off the last delivery would have seen them home but Kyle Mills held his nerve to produce a perfect leg-stump yorker.

New Zealand, put in after the match was cut back to 38 overs a side after a two-and-a-half hour delay, looked in trouble after losing three top-order wickets for seven runs to slip to 170 for five late in their innings.

But Styris and wicketkeeper Brendon McCullum came together and put on an undefeated stand of 84 at 10 runs an over to take the final score to 254.

The real fireworks came in the last four overs, when the pair hit five sixes and six fours in scoring 69 off those final 24 deliveries. Makhaya Ntini's last over went for 16.

Styris, favouring the straight and midwicket boundaries, hit four sixes and one four. McCullum hammered a 24-ball 41 not out.

Michael Papps had made 67 off 100 balls at the top of the order, but South Africa's hopes took a huge blow when strike-bowler Pollock was injured after an exemplary spell of 5.5 overs costing eight runs.

The South Africans, however, looked in control again after reaching 134 for one from 20 overs only for Styris, who had earlier dismissed Smith for 43, to strike again by removing Herschelle Gibbs for 69.

That prompted a collapse as five wickets fell for 19 runs.

Scoreboard:

New Zealand:
M.Papps c Boucher b Kallis       67
S.Fleming c Prince b Boje           43
C.Cairns run out (Prince)            20
J.Oram c Kallis b Smith              20
S.Styris not out                           45
C.McMillan run out (Boje)            1
B.McCullum not out                    41

Extras (lb-9 w-6 nb-2)            17

Total (for five wickets, 38 overs) 254

Fall of wickets: 1-100, 2-137, 3-163, 4-165, 5-170.

Did not bat: H.Marshall, D.Vettori, K.Mills, D.Tuffey.

Bowling: Pollock 5.5-1-8-0 (nb-2), Nel 5-0-38-0 (w-2), Kallis 5-0-45-1, Ntini 6-0-48-0 (w-1), Morkel 5-0-21-0 (w-2), Boje 7-0-49-1, Smith 4.1-0-36-1 (w-1)

South Africa:
G.Smith c Fleming b Styris        43
H.Gibbs c Cairns b Styris         69
J.Kallis c McCullum b Vettori   16
A.Morkel run out                        6 
B.Dippenaar c Fleming b Cairns  8
M.Boucher c and b Vettori          0
A.Prince not out                        45
N.Boje run out                          24
S.Pollock not out                       29

Extras (nb-2 w-2 lb-5)          9

Total (for seven wickets, 38 overs) 249

Did not bat: M.Ntini, A.Nel.

Fall of wickets: 1-95, 2-134, 3-140, 4-142, 5-142, 6-153, 7-203.

Bowling: Tuffey 5-1-38-0, Mills 7-0-56-0, Oram 6-1-41-0, Styris 8-0-44-2, Vettori 8-1-41-2 (nb-2 w-2), Cairns 4-0-24-1.

Result: New Zealand won by five runs.

Man of the Match: Scott Styris