Though young Tony de Zorzi has already scored six List A tons and 16 half centuries, crossing those marks on the international stage for South Africa was a completely new, and rewarding experience.
The 26-year-old had compiled good starts of 27, 21 and 28 in his previous One-Day International knocks, but on Tuesday against India in Gqeberha he showed his true potential with an incredible 119 not out opening the batting.
His innings of 122 balls which featured nine fours and six maximums, helped South Africa romp to a comfortable eight wicket victory and square the three-match series with the decider set for Paarl on Thursday.
De Zorzi said afterwards that it was an emotional moment as he reached three figures.
‘Special feeling’
“It was quite a special feeling - taking your helmet off and people screaming your name, you’re not used to it so it was quite cool. It’s the perfect place [Gqeberha] to come when you want to bounce back and feel like you’re at home,” said De Zorzi.
“I wasn’t going to tear up when it was happening, but I was very excited, it was a full flood of emotions. I thought it might not look good to cry so I went the other way.”
Though the victory was ultimately reached through a solid batting performance, with fellow opener Reeza Hendricks playing the anchor role with 52 from 81, restricting India to a modest total of 211 all out was vital.
“Reeza and I complemented each other quite nicely. He’s a senior in the team and someone I look up to. He was speaking to me about plans, and the best way to counter the Indian bowlers. When the ball was moving around like it was, it was important to stay in.”
De Zorzi also paid special tribute to the captaincy of Aiden Markram for bowling himself in combination with frontline spinner Keshav Maharaj.
“What was crucial is that we were able to strike in the middle. When you have Kesh and Aiden as your spinners, you know you have the best opportunity to squeeze [the opposition]. Even though there was a partnership in the middle, the run-rate never went over five. Everything the bowlers did today worked out.”
It was a contrasting performance from the hosts from the first game over the weekend at the Wanderers, when they were bundled out for 116 - as they too were on the wrong end of a thumping eight-wicket loss.
De Zorzi credited the turnaround in his side’s performance to the quality within the team.
“We are a really good team, and the team is quite resilient. The guys were confident we could find our stride again. I can’t give a reason why we’ve seen such polarising performances. It also shows that both teams are high quality.”