The ICC may have removed Steve Bucknor from the series, but Team India stand unmoved. For them, there’s only one way this series can continue, and that’s if the three-Test ban against Harbhajan Singh is revoked.

Anil Kumble’s team continued to stay put in Sydney today, with many players confiding that they are still seething at the way match referee Mike Procter banned Harbhajan for an alleged racist slur without giving the Indians a “fair hearing”.

A team source also revealed that Andrew Symonds, who had accused Harbhajan of calling him a monkey, admitted at the hearing that he had provoked the off-spinner first.

According to team sources, the Indian delegation at the hearing offered an opportunity to Procter and the Australian delegation to settle things behind closed doors and not blow up the issue. “Proctor completely ignored that, and Ricky Ponting (Australia captain) kept silent,” said the sources. Apparently, the senior players have gone through Procter’s verdict in detail. “The first few paragraphs are just the minutes of the meeting. Then it lists the words that have been used as evidence and adds that he is convinced that they were said with intention of making a racist remark,” said the sources.

“We told the Australians in the meeting to think twice before levelling such a charge. We asked the Australian delegation, ‘Are you aware of the implications and seriousness of the charge?’ They just kept silent. We requested them not to make a big issue out of this and hoped that both sides could move on, but they did not listen. Now we have no other option,” said the sources.

... contd.