Nine years after playing with Michael Clarke, Mitchell Johnson and Shane Watson, late-blooming Glen Batticciotto finally had his day in the sun at the Gabba.

The late-blooming 28-year-old scored an assured 101 in just his second Sheffield Shield match to thrust Queensland into a dominant position against Tasmania at stumps on day two.

Batticciotto combined superbly with Chris Hartley (85) to defy the Tigers attack on a lively wicket and help the Bulls to a formidable 226-run first-innings lead.

The pair - teammates in Australian Under-19s with Clarke, Watson and Johnson - took Queensland from a precarious 4-60 in reply to 156 to full control with a grafting 176-run stand.

"It's been a very long and hard road for me," an overjoyed Batticciotto said.

"At the end of the day that has probably made me tougher. I've just wanted it so much for years and to finally get an opportunity I just wanted to take advantage.

"It was the first time I've played at the Gabba in a four-day game so I've never had to work so hard for runs before so I stuck to my plans and it worked for me. It's something I'll cherish."

After 14 wickets fell on the opening day as the ball hooped around under cloudy skies, the pair of left-handers were watchful and calculated as the sun shone on them for more than four hours on Monday.

Tailender Chris Swan then piled on the pain for Tasmania with a belligerent unbeaten 82 in the last hour to have the home side 9-382 at stumps.

But it was wicketkeeper Hartley, dropped twice on 21 and 77, and the chanceless Batticciotto who set the Bulls on a path towards maximum points after they scored just 15 runs in the first 50 minutes.

The son of a Sicilian Qantas pilot, Batticciotto seemed destined to never reach greater heights than his tour to the 2000 Under-19 World Cup in Sri Lanka.

But the recent retirements of Jimmy Maher and Martin Love, plus the loss of Watson and Andrew Symonds has propelled him into the Bulls line-up in all forms of the game.

"I have just stuck to my beliefs and felt as though eventually I would make it," Batticciotto said.

"Queensland has always been such a strong side. You've got the likes of Maher and Love and you can't expect to break in that easily.

"I knew there would come a time when quite a few of them would have to retire."

Brett Geeves was the pick of the Tigers attack, taking 5-106 from 32 overs, while Jason Krejza bowled Batticciotto for his sole wicket from 23 overs.

Queensland opener Ryan Broad was sent for scans on a badly bruised hand but is set to bat in the second innings if required.