Emotional Proteas centurion Sarel Erwee says he was a phone call away from quitting cricket

Johannesburg - Sarel Erwee admitted on Friday that he’d nearly given up playing cricket having grown tired of the day-to-day slog of the semi-professional and franchise setup from where dreams of playing for South Africa seemed very distant.

The 32-year-old left hander scored a sublime hundred on the opening day of the second Test against New Zealand in Christchurch, spending seven minutes shy of five hours at the crease.

His 108, that included 14 fours, saw him share partnerships of 111 for the first wicket with Dean Elgar and 88 for the second wicket with Aiden Markram, after the Proteas surprisingly chose to bat first.

Erwee celebrated enthusiastically, raising his bat to his sister, who resides in New Zealand and whom he hasn’t seen for four years and the visiting dressing room where his teammates stood and applauded.

ALSO READ: Sensational Sarel Erwee helps Proteas grab initiative on day one of second Test

“It’s a very special day. (28 months ago) I didn’t think I would be close to being in a position where I’d be in a South African Test squad. To sit here today with a Test hundred behind my name is extremely special,” he said.

“It’s more special having gone through all the hard yards over the years, taking learnings, and implementing them in the squad in the last year.”

Erwee, who made his first class debut in 2008, has been one of the most consistent batters in domestic cricket in the last five seasons, but his output for the Dolphins has improved  in the last two years.

“I was a phone call away from saying I was done. My parents thankfully provided encouragement and I started seeing a sports performance psychologist. We started working on my mental well being. That was the turning point for me. I’m not the