New Delhi: The mild reprimand meted out to Australian opener Matthew Hayden for calling Harbhajan Singh an 'obnoxious little weed' may mean he will now be more careful with his words.
Hayden, who was charged for violating Cricket Australia's (CA) code of behaviour under Rule 9 by speaking against Harbhajan was reprimanded and let off without a fine.
But Harbhajan who was the target of his verbal abuse seems in no mood to stop.
Now, the Indian off-spinner has taken on Australian skipper Ricky Ponting and told an Australian newspaper that Ponting abused him during the Adelaide One-Day International.
Ponting apparently continually asked Harbhajan to "show what he had got" while the off-spinner was batting.
He also claims Ponting abused him after he was dismissed.
Ponting and Harbhajan then reportedly again exchanged words later that night outside the dressing room.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) though is not amused at Harbhajan's candour. The BCCI has held up Sachin Tendulakar as an example on how to stay away from controversies both on and off the field.
Meanwhile, the BCCI's Chief Administrative Officer Ratnakar Shetty ruled out that they would be taking up the issue of Hayden’s outburst against Harbhajan with the International Cricket Council.
"That was something which happened outside the field of play," Shetty was quoted as saying by the PTI in Kochi on Thursday.
"The Indian board has nothing to do with it as it is an internal matter of Cricket Australia. Our players are well behaved. They are more focused on cricket," he said.
Comments
0 comment