Mumbai, April 28th, 2008: Harbhajan Singh of the Mumbai Indians was today found guilty of conduct unbecoming of a cricketer and against the spirit of the game. Based on prima facie video evidence and an independent investigation conducted by the match adjudicator and refree Farokh Engineer and his report therein on the incident at Mohali, the Governing Council of the Indian Premier League today decided to suspend Harbhajan Singh for the next 11 or 13 matches in the Indian Premier League. The suspension is in addition to a fine of a 100% of his match fees beginning with the third match. The other cricketer S. Sreesanth of the Kings XI Punjab was let off with a stern warning by the Match Refree.
Commenting on the eleven match or thirteen match suspension verdict post the inquiry by the match adjudicator, Lalit Modi, Chairman & Commissoiner, DLF Indian Premier League said, “While we did appreciate Harbhajan taking responsibility of his actions, the fact remained that his action against a fellow cricketer was unprovoked. More importantly from a BCCI and Indian Premier League perspective it was conduct completely against the Spirit of Cricket. Importantly, all the cricketers playing in the inaugural season of the DLF Indian Premier League are role models for an entire generation of youth and it is crucial for youngsters all over the world to learn straight away the values of this great game and the spirit in which it should be played. The eyes of the world will be on the DLF Indian Premier League and we want to see cricket, and the Spirit of Cricket, at its best.”
Announcing the final verdict, post the hearing at New Delhi, Farokh Engineer the Match Refree also charged the coach of the Mumbai Indians Lalchand Rajput with a level 2 misconduct stating that he will forfeit 50% of his match fee as he did not take any action to stop Harbhajan Singh.