The player at the centre of one of cricket‘s most explosive controversies has predicted further tension and aggro as the fight for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy heads to Brisbane for the series-shaping third Test. Harbhajan Singh was the central figure in the infamous Monkeygate scandal in 2008, accused of racially vilifying Australia all-rounder Andrew Symonds during the Sydney Test.

The off-spinner was originally handed a three-game ban before that decision was overturned on a lack of evidence and he was instead fined 50 per cent of his match fee. The Australians were incensed by the move and felt the authorities had kow-towed to the powerful BCCI (Board of Control Cricket India) following the visitors’ threats to abandon the tour.

Singh was an interested onlooker as Travis Head and India fast bowler Mohammed Siraj went at each other in a fiery exchange following the Australian’s dismissal in the first innings of the second Test. Both players were sanctioned by the International Cricket Council (ICC) and told to dial down the aggression.

Singh expressed hope the incident would not lead to more bad blood between the two sides, but conceded further blow-ups are likely. “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,” he told Star Sports.

“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.

“Let’s focus on cricket rather than all these controversies. Enough is enough. But what I feel personally is things will definitely get heated from the next Test match again.”

Tim Paine tips Travis Head to maintain aggressive style

Singh’s prediction of further angst between the teams comes as former Australia skipper Tim Paine warned India that Head would not curb his aggression following his magnificent century in the second Test. Paine said the South Australian would continue to go after the tourists after a career-defining shift in attitude following his axing from the Test side in 2019.

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“I think he and JL (former Australia coach Justin Langer) used to have a real difference of opinion,” Paine told SEN radio. “They (the coaching staff) were trying hard for him to work on his defence and it wasn’t the way he wanted to go about it.

“I think that’s been the major shift in his output because he is sticking true to the way he wants to play. He’s going to be super aggressive, he’s going to be playing his shots and he’s going to try and be a match-winner.”