- With his mother watching on from the stands, Proteas batter Tony de Zorzi came close to scoring his maiden Test century at the Wanderers on Wednesday.
- De Zorzi scored a well-played 85 on the first day of the second Test against the West Indies.
- He admitted that perhaps he was probably a little "greedy" in attempting an expansive shot only to be bowled by spinner Gudakesh Motie.
The scene was set for Tony de Zorzi.
He had moved serenely to 85, undoubtedly enticed by the prospect of converting his first Test score of over 50 - in just his third innings - into a triple-figure milestone on what was then an easy-paced surface at the Bullring.
Natasha, his mother, was belatedly granted the opportunity to sit in her customary seat on the Memorial Stand and watch her son, a rare occurrence nowadays since Tony left for Cape Town and Western Province.
And then he got "greedy", launching a booming drive off West Indies left-arm spinner Gudakesh Motie, playing inside the delivery and getting castled.
"Obviously, it was a good opportunity. Dean [Elgar] and Aiden [Markram] gave me a nice basis to work from at No 3 and allowed me to play the way I did. I was disappointed not to get over the line, I was probably a bit greedy with the delivery that got me out," said De Zorzi.
Yet the 25-year-old left-hander isn't going to dwell on his missed chance.
"At the end of the day, I'm happy to contribute towards the score and the team's performance."
Instead, De Zorzi just focused on enjoying a day where he took a significant step towards establishing himself as an international player.
"There were a couple of friends present and a few who called themselves friends, but I've never seen them in my life," he said.
"It's nice to have my mom watching because she doesn't get a lot of chances to do that. This was nice. She usually sits in the same place, so I knew where she was. Hopefully next time she comes, she'll see a century."
Identified as a gifted young player with leadership potential, De Zorzi played age-group cricket at all levels but had to bide his time at senior level.
The past few years have been profitable for him at provincial level and 507 first-class runs at an average over 100 gave the new Proteas hierarchy a compelling reason to grant him a look-in.
But did De Zorzi himself ever become impatient?
"There are moments you feel a bit impatient, but I've played with a lot of senior guys who gave me perspective," he said.
"Andrew Puttick is part of our system at Province and you hear some of those stories and get a reality check. Yeah, you might be impatient at 25, but these guys average 40 to 50 their whole careers and never got a chance.
"You might feel aggrieved but you have no right. You have to wait for an opportunity and just take it."
The early evidence seems to suggest he's doing just that.