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He was tested to the limit on his first Test series tour. But Trinidad and Tobago and West Indies batsman Daren Ganga declares himself none the worse for wear.

Instead, having faced the fire of Hansie Cronje and his rampant, whitewashing South Africans, the teenaged Ganga has become a battle-hardened 20-year-old, wiser and still raring to go.

``To be mentally prepared and to be strong within yourself. That was one of the main things I learned,'' Ganga told the Express yesterday.

Ganga needed inner strength.

Having left home celebrated as the first T&T teenager since Deryck Murray to be selected to play for the West Indies, the boy from Barrackpore soon found himself branded a rebel along with his colleagues during the pay dispute that threatened to derail the tour before it began. When play did get under way, the Windies suffered the first Test whitewash in their 71-year history.

Ganga, who became part of the action from the Third Test, managed a meagre 75 runs in six innings, averaging 12.50. South African pacer Shaun Pollock was chiefly responsible for the modest returns, dismissing Ganga six times in the series.

Can he possibly have a more difficult tour in his career?

``I hope not!'' a chuckling Ganga said.

``I hope things will get better. I was very eager and confident (on debut). I knew what I wanted to do. I just wanted to make an impact and help West Indies. But I'm very disappointed. With us having lost both the Test and One-days, I have not achieved what I wanted,'' admitted the Naparima College student. ``But I'm not discouraged.''

Instead, Ganga labelled his baptism by pace ``a learning experience.''

``I've learnt a lot from certain situations and circumstances. I've learnt about batsmanship.''

Speaking further about his technical education, Ganga said, ``I learned about the importance of rotating the strike and being able to adjust to situations, communicating with your partner to help him out. South Africa worked out what they wanted to do for each player.''

But of even greater value to Ganga were the mental lessons.

``A lot of things were happening off the field at the same time. You had to be strong enough to not let anything affect you. But I think I am a better player. At that level you gain confidence. I hope to use that in the future.''

The future comes almost immediately for Ganga. This morning he heads for Anguilla with the rest of the national side for the fifth round Busta Cup tie against the Leeward Islands, aiming to make the most of his South African summer of hard knocks.

``I really want to go there and make an impact,'' he ended, ``score a lot of runs to give myself confidence and put myself back up on the map.''