According to a Cricket Australia press release here, the Australian opener breached the CA Code of Behaviour Rule 9 relating to “detrimental public comment” following the charge made by CEO James Sutherland. Code of Conduct Commissioner Ron Beazley issued a reprimand of Hayden as penalty for the breach.

Small rap, big surprise

Contrary to expectations that the left-hander will be slapped with a fine during the three-hour appeal’s hearing, the simple reprimand came as a surprise. The decision at 11.30 pm Melbourne time brought an end to a hectic day that started with Sutherland promising BCCI secretary Niranjan Shah some serious action after the Indian board had complained against Hayden’s unwarranted remarks and other Australian cricketers. Yesterday, Hayden had called Harbhajan an ‘obnoxious little weed’ and followed it up with a few words of advice to Ishant Sharma.

The Indian team, however, refused to go overboard, instead firing silent barbs at the opener. Harbhajan Singh, who arrived at the Hobart airport in the morning, looked rather relaxed and undisturbed by yet another verbal sling at him. “What’s the meaning of the word, please tell me,” he smiled. “Seriously, who’s Matthew Hayden?” he asked defiantly.

We’ll play our cricket

“Everybody knows who the bad boys in cricket are,” he said in a veiled remark to Australia’s sledging reputation. “I have encountered enough on this tour. I just want to stay away from all this now. I’m used to it, it doesn’t make a difference any more. Let them keep talking, we’ll play our cricket.

“Maybe they know that we are challenging them and have done well against them. That’s why they are coming out with words like that,” he said, rushing to join Sachin Tendulkar .

Even team manager Vimal Soni seemed to brush aside the issue. “We have nothing to do with what CA is doing about it. Our job is to play cricket and not get involved in what others say,” said Soni when asked for his reaction to the Hayden let-off .

“Nobody is bothered about what Hayden has said and what CA has done on him. We are focusing on cricket only, to play the finals in Sydney and Brisbane,” Soni added.

In Mumbai, secretary Shah refused to react, saying: “Hayden made the comments off the field and we have nothing to comment on CA’s decision. That is the CA’s internal matter.”

Rain in Sydney

Meanwhile, it has been raining in Sydney and the forecast is more rains in the coming week too.

The showers may or may not interrupt what might be an engrossing final here, but it certainly looked symbolic: the temperatures from the heat generated between the two teams have cooled down considerably.

It’s their internal matter, says Shah

The Board of Control for Cricket in India, surprisingly, preferred not to comment on Cricket Australia’s decision to let Hayden off with a rap on the knuckles. “Hayden made the comments off the field and we have nothing to comment on CA’s decision on him. That is Cricket Australia’s internal matter,” BCCI secretary Niranjan Shah said in Mumbai on Wednesday.