Dominic Harris followed in the footsteps of Martin Speight by scoring a century for Hurstpierpoint College in India.

The 16-year-old, who also bowls leg-spin, struck 105 against Devraj Singh's XI in a match played at the beautiful Police Gymkhana Ground in Mumbai.

Harris, who captained Sussex under-15s last season, became only the third Hurst boy to score a century in the college's six tours of India.

Now he hopes to follow the first of that trio, Speight, into Sussex's first XI.

He said: "I fell in love with India and with cricket in India and I want to go back as soon as I have the opportunity.

"I learned an amazing amount on the tour, like how to be much more independent. The tour lasted a month and I found being away from my family for that long quite difficult, especially over Christmas.

"I had to learn that in everything you do, you have to think of the effect you have on others. That was an important lesson because you modify your behaviour and have to be more thoughtful.

"Playing out there was very different and in many ways I found it easier. The hard, dry wickets meant that the ball bounced much more true than it does on an English wicket and this helped my batting and bowling enormously.

"But that was only true at the really first-class grounds that we played on. As we went further south, the grounds were generally not in such good condition and then of course the ball could be very erratic.

"That was a really tough challenge and the other thing that you can never forget about India is the heat.

"We were playing in temperatures of 32 degrees plus, which was tough and draining because there was simply no escape."

Hurst won one and drew one of their 11 matches on tour, but five of the games were played on unfamiliar matting wickets.

Coach Derek Semmence, who assisted cricket master Chris Gray, said: "We won the only day/night match we played when temperatures were, of course, far more moderate.

"But in all fairness I have to pay tribute to the quality of the mostly club teams we were playing. They were outstandingly good.

"As a result, every member of the Hurst squad learned a great deal about themselves and developed their cricketing skills considerably. We have returned a greatly strengthened team in every respect."

In a keenly contested 40-over match at the Brabourne Stadium, Mumbai, Raj Kumar College recovered from 10-3 to 155 all out despite some excellent leg-spin by Harris and a spell of 4-16 by captain James Bayly.

The match ended when a six-bound shot from Andrew Gordon-Stewart was brilliantly caught on the boundary, leaving Raj Kumar College winners by 23 runs.

They retained the 10in-high silver elephant trophy while Hurst brought back the larger wood and ivory one.

Other highlights included matches on two Test grounds in Mumbai.

Medium pacer Gordon-Stewart took 18 wickets and all-rounder Luke Tarr produced consistently strong performances, but Semmence said the tour was about much more than just cricket.

Travelling through such a vast country with diverse landscapes, religions, customs and traditions was an eye-opener for many of the boys, parents and staff.

Highlights off the pitch included the splendours of New Delhi, the Taj Mahal, elephant rides at the Amer Fort, Christmas carols against the backdrop of a glistening Arabian Sea and a firework display, reception and dinner organised by Udaipur's young Prince, Hurst old boy Lakshyraj Singh Mewar.

Semmence said: "The list of moments, people and places that we all will treasure seems simply endless.

"Our headmaster, Stephen Meek, commented that to travel to India is an adventure, to see so much of the real India as guests of such generous hosts is a privilege, but to do all this and play cricket in India must be a simply wonderful experience. He was spot on!"

Arvind Singh Mewar, Maharana of Udaipur, said: "It is the interaction of such like-minded youngsters which results in achieving excellence. Cricket fosters ever-lasting friendship."