IS Williamstown Juniors Cricket Club product Evan Gulbis on his way to securing a prized contract with the Victorian Bushrangers?
The strokemaker has been in spectacular form with the bat for Carlton in Victorian Premier Cricket for the past two summers.
The Yarraville resident, who celebrates his 23rd birthday tomorrow, is the talk of the competition after blasting a superlative 163 not out at No.5 to spearhead the Blues to a remarkable win over Fitzroy-Doncaster in a cutthroat semi-final at Schramms Reserve on Sunday.
The young gun took guard under all sorts of pressure with his side languishing at 3-37 in pursuit of a massive 379.
The run chase seemed like a mission impossible.
But Gulbis insisted he was determined "to take the emotion out of it" as he started his innings. "You can't let the pressure get to you," he said.
He enjoyed a slice of good fortune early, surviving a difficult stumping chance when on seven.
Boy, did Gulbis make Lions pay. He thrashed 21 boundaries and two sixes during his thrill-a-minute, 197-ball innings as Carlton hit up 5-381 to celebrate a victory that will be talked about by those lucky to witness it for many summers to come.
Interestingly, Bushrangers' chairman of selectors John MacWhirter was on hand to watch the carnage as Gulbis wreaked havoc.
Gulbis and captain Tim Welsford, who scored 104 not out with 13 boundaries and six sixes, shared an unbroken sixth-wicket partnership of 168 off 138 deliveries in just 90 minutes.
The breathtaking, record-breaking stand had to be seen to be believed, Blues' administrative manager John McConville said. It eclipsed the club's previous record stand of 154 set by legendary batsman John Scholes and accomplished wicketkeeper/batsman Kevin Whichello against St Kilda in 1985-86.
Gulbis' run tally now stands at an impressive 746 with four 100s at an average of 49.73. Remarkably, he also has another 100 to his name against Geelong in the Primary Edge Cup Twenty20 comp this summer.
The kid's a ripper. Gulbis put his name up in lights after blazing a phenomenal 15 sixes in a scintillating 159 off 111 deliveries in a one-dayer against Dandenong at the Eastern Oval in Ballarat in the comp's annual country round during the 2008-09 season.
It led to his selection in the Victorian second XI.
He finished the summer with 808 runs at an average of 38 and was thrilled to be selected in Cricket Victoria's prestigious Premier team of the season.
A member of the Victorian Academy and clearly in the sights of Bushrangers' coach Greg Shipperd, Gulbis was desperate to keep the runs flowing this season.
But his lofty aspirations almost got blown to smithereens during the off-season.
A handy forward, Gulbis pulled on the boots for Keilor Park in the Essendon District Football League's Bgrade.
A splendid bag of 15 goals against the hapless Jacana was a major highlight early in the season.
But disaster struck a couple of weeks later when Gulbis suffered a serious knee injury as he attempted a spoil.
"My life flashed before my eyes," he recalled.
"I was thinking, what am I doing playing football?"
Gulbis was fortunate, though.
"My injury was the worst you could do without snapping your anterior cruciate ligament. I was so lucky," he said.
Footy is in Gulbis' blood.
His father Ollie was a brilliant half-back flanker for Keilor Park, who won the EDFL's B grade competition best and fairest in a premiership year in 1990.
He promptly won the A grade comp b 'n' f in 1991.
"We're the only father and son to play in a premiership in the club's history. I played in a premiership in the under-14s," Gulbis said with pride.
An only child, Gulbis thanked his father and mother, Elaine, for their tremendous support over the years.
"They mean everything [to me]," he said.
"They do anything you can ask of them. It's just amazing. They take days off work when they need to [to watch me play]. They bend over backwards for you."
Fiercely proud of his working class origins in the west, Gulbis was just 15 when he was selected to make his first XI debut with Williamstown in the Victorian Sub-District Cricket Association.
Then Melbourne picked Gulbis in its Dowling Shield under-16 squad.
Enjoying and benefitting tremendously from some valuable one-on-one coaching with Carlton icon John Scholes at the time, Gulbis didn't hesitate in buckling up the pads for the Blues when it was time to graduate to senior ranks in Victoria's top competition.
Gulbis is hoping for a fairytale finish to what has been an unforgettable summer.
He has a key role to play as Carlton do battle with reigning premier Ringwood in the grand final at Melbourne University's picturesque ground which starts on Friday.
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