South Australia’s Callum Ferguson has raced to a century to continue the punishment for Victoria on day two of their Sheffield Shield game at the MCG.

In reply to the Bushrangers’ 118, the visitors were 7-340 at tea on Saturday, giving them a lead of 222.

Ferguson, 108 not out, smashed three fours in five deliveries from seamer Clint McKay to bring up his ton late in the second session.

He joined opener Phillip Hughes, who was dismissed shortly before lunch for 103, as SA century-makers, after none of Victoria’s batsmen could reach 40.

Trent Lawford was unbeaten on 14, but had been given two lives to continue what has been a horrible game for the home side, coming off an innings defeat against Western Australia.

Hughes and Ferguson shared a 98-run stand for the third wicket before leg-spinner Fawad Ahmed dismissed Hughes LBW.

While that sparked a mini-slump of 3-19, which took SA to 6-260, No.8 Kane Richardson (25) ensured Victoria wouldn’t crash through the lower order in a hurry.

Once he fell, caught behind off McKay, Lawford helped Ferguson continued to frustrate the Bushrangers.

The first ball Lawford faced flew over slips for four.

His luck continued when, on eight, he top-edged a pull shot off McKay which ballooned just wide of Aaron Finch at slip, but the fieldsman lost sight of the ball and failed to catch it.

The batsmen ran a single and Ferguson belted three boundaries from the remaining five balls of the over to reach triple-figures.

The pain was compounded for McKay, when he dropped Lawford in the outfield in the following over, off Dan Christian’s bowling.