Former India spinner Harbhajan Singh has given his two cents on the spat between India pacer Mohammed Siraj and Australia batter Travis Head during the pink-ball second Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy at Adelaide. Harbhajan – himself no stranger to controversy during India-Australia encounters – opined that the ICC has been too harsh on the players, following sanctions for both Siraj and Head. The former off-spinner also refused to take sides on the matter, but added that things are likely to heaten up again between the two sides.
“Well, I think the ICC is a bit too strict on players. These things happen on the ground. The players have patched up and talked to each other. Anyways, ICC being ICC has sanctioned the players,” said Harbhajan, speaking on Star Sports.
“Let’s focus on cricket rather than all these controversies. Enough is enough,” Harbhajan said further.
Both Siraj and Head were handed one demerit point by the ICC, while Siraj was also fined 20 percent of his match fees from the second Test.
Harbhajan predicted that things are likely to heaten up even more from the next Test match. With the series tied at 1-1 and three more Tests remaining, it is vital for both sides to win as they battle to qualify for the World Test Championship (WTC) 2025 final.
“You can’t really say who was wrong, who was right here. What I feel is that this should be the end of this thing right now. What I feel personally is, the things will definitely get heated from the next Test match again, but whatever incident happened here, should be left here in Adelaide,” Harbhajan said.
Harbhajan was infamously embroiled in the ‘Monkeygate’ controversy with Andrew Symonds during the 2007-08 Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Back then, Harbhajan had initially been handed a three-match ban for alleged racism towards Symonds, before it was overturned and he was fined 50 percent of his match fees instead, after sufficient evidence couldn’t be found.
India and Australia resume rivalry on Saturday, December 14, in the third Test in Brisbane.
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