A brave decision to move from the comfort of the middle order to open the innings has paid dividends for David Lloyd.
The 20-year-old former Brymbo ace was determined to make an impact with Welsh county outfit Glamorgan - and that meant putting his neck on the line.
Lloyd wanted to open the batting in 2012 and even trialled with Leicestershire in a bid to make that happen.
Glamorgan refused to let Lloyd slip from their grasp without a fight and invited the batsman back, promptly promoting him up the second XI order.
A competitive average of 53.7 is proof that Lloyd was right to want to open the innings and he has started to be noticed by members of the first team, including Robert Croft and Martin van Jaarsveld.
“I spent time with Leicestershire in the winter because I said to Glamorgan that I wanted to open the batting,” he confirmed. “I enjoy opening the batting having done it on a few occasions last year.
“I would rather have the ball coming on to the bat and I like the pace of the opening bowlers.”
Lloyd had made a promising start to the season in difficult conditions with a top score of 72 from five innings.
On May 22, Lloyd arrived in Bristol for a three-day clash with Gloucestershire following a third-ball duck for Wales Minor Counties against Dorset, but things were about to change for the youngster.
Gloucestershire had posted 301-9 declared and left Glamorgan - and Lloyd - with a tricky 10-over period at the end of the day’s play.
Rather than let it phase him, Lloyd relished the challenge and survived to make sure that he would return to the crease the following day.
Having got his eye in the night before, Lloyd took the Gloucestershire attack apart, hitting 29 fours as he scored 182 - his first century for the Glamorgan second string.
“I managed to get to 30-odd overnight and from that point it seemed to click,” he admitted modestly.
“I was disappointed not to get to 200 because I thought I was going to, but it was my first century for the second team and it was superb.
“I was seeing it like a football throughout the innings and that spell the night before really helped.”
Going into the game on the back of a duck and having to face a 10-over spell is most opening batsman’s worst nightmare - but not for Lloyd.
“A lot of the time the opposition are over attacking,” he said. “They usually bowl full and any form of bat on ball usually means runs in front of the wicket because of the field.”
A text message from Glamorgan head coach Matthew Mott suggested that Lloyd’s innings had not gone unnoticed and a first team debut is the next box to tick.
“I may have turned a few heads,” highlighted Lloyd. “Matthew text me and it was good of him to do that.
“There have been discussions with the chief executive about getting me registered to play but it may still be a little way off.
“The second team has experienced players that deserve the chance to see if they can earn another contract.
“I just have to continue performing and wait until my moment. I am happy scoring runs in the seconds and if I can be consistent then it will set me up for the future.
“It is all about taking things step by step.”
Until he gets the first team call Lloyd his happy to continue playing second XI cricket as well as turning out for Birmingham Premier League outfit Wellington.
With every aspiring young sportsman, however, international is the pinnacle, and while Lloyd is not getting ahead of himself, he has taken a look to the future.
As part of the new generation of cricketers, Lloyd spoke about his preferred format of the game.
“I like playing T20,” he declared. “It is an exciting form and you are always involved, it is like football in that respect.
“The problem with three-day matches is when you make a low score you end up sitting around watching for a long time.”