Sourav Ganguly's hackles had risen after the duck inflicted on him by Ajit Agarkar in the Challenger Series opener at Chennai. His wrath took a grim toll in the second game on Tuesday, the India Seniors captain slaughtering a hapless India B attack for 142. And yet, Ganguly was not in the surest of touch early in his innings, struggling to middle the pull shot which, by his own admission, he is yet to master.

Ganguly was caught twice off no-balls and was lucky to escape a stumping chance, all before reaching his fifty which included six boundaries but just a solitary six off Nikhil Chopra. The pace quickened after rival skipper Robin Singh put himself on. Soon enough Ganguly dismissed him from the proceedings, an inside shot over wide long off being the crowning blow.

Mohd. Kaif was the next bowler to feel the pinch. Ganguly stepped yards down the wicket to swat a full toss over midwicket and shortly afterwards, he brought up his hundred with another six off the same bowler, this one going high, wide and handsome over the straight boundary. Ganguly hadn't really collared Sachin Tendulkar's off breaks just yet, but warmed up to the task in the 30th over by a hitting a fifth six. Tendulkar had been tossing the ball up generously but he just pushed this one through and Ganguly flatbatted it above the sightscreen.

The acme of Ganguly's brilliance was reached in the 31st over of the innings. Left arm spinner Sukhwinder Singh was belatedly pressed into service as the eighth bowler. His first ball was respectfully patted down the wicket. All courtesies were set aside for the next few balls which kept disappearing into and over the pickets with monotonous regularity. A 6,6,4,6,6,4 later, Sukhwinder's figures were disfigured beyond recognition.

Having compounded his agony by bowling two no-balls, Sukhwinder's plight finally earned redress with the eighth and final delivery of the over. A leading edge from Ganguly's flashing blade was consumed by long-off to a collective sigh of relief from the fielders and groan of dismay from the crowd. Ten fours and nine sixes studded his 142 off 106 balls. The rest of the game, including Tendulkar's breathtaking 77, was destined to be an anticlimax. Ganguly took two wickets, even caught Tendulkar at midwicket, but his most defining contribution had come and gone just one quarter into the contest.