Harbhajan may be punished further in slapping row

Updated: May 7, 2008, 3:15 AM EST Comment

add this RSS blog print
NEW DELHI (AP) - Banned from a lucrative twenty20 tournament after slapping a rival player, ace spinner Harbhajan Singh faces further punishment from the Indian cricket board.

Board of Control for Cricket in India's inquiry commissioner, Sudhir Nanavati said Tuesday he was stunned by the video footage of last month's incident in which test star Singh slapped his national teammate Shantakumaran Sreesanth, who was playing for the opposing team.

"What I saw was shocking," Nanavati was quoted as saying in Mumbai by the Press Trust of India.

Nanavati, who will complete his inquiry on Monday, has summoned Singh and Sreesanth to explain their conduct.

Charged for violating the players' code of conduct, Singh was banned from the rest of the tournament and fined his fee from the match in which the incident occurred. Singh will also lose a substantial part of his contract of US$850,000 (€545,000) for the 46-day event.

Team coach Lalchand Rajput was fined 50 percent of his match fee for not stopping Singh's attack, while Sreesanth was cautioned.

Nanavati said the cricket board may also take disciplinary action against Singh, who is its contracted player.

"According to the Indian cricket board contract, he gets match fee for the whole year," PTI quoted Nanavati as saying. He said Singh was being paid separately for playing in the twenty20 tournament.

"If he is getting paid by both at the same time, he will be punished twice," Nanavati said.

Earlier this year, Singh was at the center of controversy during a test series against Australia. He was initially banned for three tests for allegedly making racist remarks against Australia allrounder Andrew Symonds. An appeal was upheld and his punishment reduced to a fine.

Please note by clicking on "Post Comment" you acknowledge that you have read the Terms of Use and the comment you are posting is in compliance with such terms. Be polite. Inappropriate posts may be removed by the moderator.

 advertisement

 advertisement

FOXSports.com >> Feedback | Press | Jobs | Tickets | Join Our Opinion Panel | Subscribe
Other Fox Sites >> FOX.com | FOX News | News Corp.
© 2008 Fox Sports Interactive Media, LLC. All rights reserved. | Privacy Policy | Terms of Use