Tim Robinson wasn’t even supposed to play in the series-opening Chappell-Hadlee Twenty20 against Australia.
Now that he has, though, the 23-year-old’s life might have just changed forever.
Instead of carrying the drinks at Mount Maunganui’s Bay Oval, Robinson hammered his first century for the Black Caps, with an unbeaten 106 runs from 66 balls, as the backbone of New Zealand’s 181/6.
And even if Australia were relatively untroubled in their chase - winning with six wickets and 21 balls to spare - Robinson more than took his chance on the biggest stage.
In spite of that, though, the Black Caps batter couldn’t help but accept the “bittersweet” nature of a display of individual brilliance in a collective defeat.
“It’s a bit of a double-edged sword,” Robinson said. “I’m obviously pretty happy with how I went, but that’s trumped by the fact we’ve lost that game.
“It’s pretty amazing, I’m not going to lie. It’s a fantastic feeling - you’d be a little bit weird if you didn’t feel amazing after that.
“But I’m hungry for more. I want to keep doing the jersey proud, and keep doing the boys I’m playing with proud, and my family.
“[I want to] contribute to more wins for New Zealand.”
Robinson’s innings wasn’t just impressive for what he did, as much as it was for how he did it.
Batting out of position at No 3 thanks to injury to Rachin Ravindra, Robinson walked to the wicket at 4/1, which quickly became 6/3 when his teammates fell around him.
But for a player who was initially picked by the Black Caps for his ability to hit boundaries at the top of the order, 52 of his runs came between the wickets.
As a testament to the maturity Robinson showed, his century was only raised with the innings’ penultimate ball, with a scoop to the fine leg boundary, before sending Ben Dwarshius into the stands and walking off unbeaten.
Aside from the defeat, though, Robinson’s biggest disappointment was that his Wellington teammate Ravindra couldn’t be part of his night’s work.
“I’m really disappointed for Rachin, he’s one of my close mates. It’s horrible to see him injure himself and miss out on playing for a team he loves.
“I love playing cricket with him, I’m gutted to have missed him. But in saying that, it’s given me an opportunity. That’s, in and of itself, a weird feeling. I wouldn’t be playing tonight if that didn’t happen.
“I’m always grateful for any opportunity I get to put on the black jersey, but I’m really disappointed that my mate’s gone home.
“It’s a bit of a funny one.”
While the immediate aftermath of the defeat might be too soon for Robinson to think about the rest of his career, doing what he did at Bay Oval will open more than one door.
With cricket’s balance between club and country more precarious than ever, Robinson will have garnered plenty of attention from big money T20 franchises looking to unearth the next short form star.
In 2014, Corey Anderson plundered a record 116 runs against the West Indies, which saw him earn $866,000 from Indian Premier League side the Mumbai Indians.
And with all due respect to the West Indian side of 2014, Robinson’s innings came against a markedly better bowling attack.
Before he’s even turned 25, Robinson has experienced the T20 franchise circuit with Caribbean Premier League side Guyana Amazon Warriors in 2024, and English county side Northamptonshire this year.
And while those two stints didn’t yield anywhere near the same success as what happened at Bay Oval, scoring an international century against Australia - after a man-of-the-match performance against South Africa earlier this year - will turn heads.
Robinson’s innings might not attract the attention of India just yet. But considering how cricket has expanded to see franchise leagues in all corners of the world, he’ll be fielding offers sooner or later.
For the time being, though, Robinson isn’t concerned about any upcoming franchise auctions or drafts.
“That’s always going to get you unravelled when you’re thinking ahead, and not thinking about trying to win a game.
“You’re trying to put your team in the best position you possibly can, that’s the brand of cricket we play here. To me, it’s the best brand, doing what you can for the team in that moment.
“What comes of this, comes of this. I’m just pretty happy to perform for my team, albeit in a losing cause today.”
And yet, the reality is that the Black Caps’ best laid plans wouldn’t have had Robinson near the playing XI.
It wasn’t just Ravindra’s injury that opened the door. Finn Allen’s broken foot, Glenn Phillips’ niggly groin and Kane Williamson’s continued short form unavailability have also given Robinson a chance he’s more than taken.
Professional sport, and cricket in particular, is as much about opportunity as it is ability.
With a T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka on the horizon, Robinson has given coach Rob Walter plenty of food for thought when the time to pick his 15-man squad arrives.
“I want to make the most of everything that comes my way,” he said. “I love it.
“Competition for spots is fantastic, it breeds hunger and is uplifting for everybody.
“It’s fantastic that we’ve got such good competition for spots, and makes Rob’s job really hard.
“That’s my goal, make him make hard decisions.”
Alex Powell is a sports journalist for the NZ Herald. He has been a sports journalist since 2016.