Compared with some of the aggressive, offensive or lewd sledging with which Australian cricketers have assaulted their opponents over the years, calling Harbhajan Singh an “obnoxious weed” was remarkably tame. But Matthew Hayden’s sneering comment in a radio interview about the India off spinner has landed him with an official reprimand.

If Hayden’s remark had the patronising tone of a bullying prefect addressing a naughty schoolboy, India responded like whining children. Instead of laughing off the comment, they went running to teacher, so to speak, and made a formal complaint to Cricket Australia.

The Australian board issued a reprimand to Hayden yesterday – but did not fine him – after charging the opening batsman with a breach of Rule 9 of its code of conduct, which prohibits players from the “public denigration of other players against whom they have or will play”.

Hayden, who is rarely shy about giving his opponents a few words of abuse, has appeared to go out of his way to wind up the Indians during the Commonwealth Bank Series. After the match between the teams in Sydney on Sunday, India complained to the match referee that Hayden had called Harbhajan a “mad boy”. The Queensland left-hander clarified in his Brisbane radio interview that in fact he had said “bad boy”.

He then risked inflaming passions still further by saying that he would like to take on Ishant Sharma, the 19-year-old beanpole of a fast bowler, in the boxing ring.

Sharma has been one of India’s best players on this winter’s tour, but he appeared to let the needling get to him on Sunday. In the fourth over of the one-day international, Hayden hit him for four and six off successive balls and received a series of baleful glares. Later in the game, Sharma pointed to the pavilion after dismissing Andrew Symonds. The bowler was fined 15 per cent of his match fee by the referee, Jeff Crowe, for the Level 1 offence.

Mahendra Singh Dhoni, the India one-day captain, said that Sharma had been provoked and also backed Harbhajan to rediscover his form despite this latest controversy. It will be interesting to see whether animosity lingers when Dhoni and Hayden become Chennai teammates when the Indian Premier League starts in April.

Despite some high-quality cricket and dramatic matches during India’s fourTest series in Australia and the triangular one-day competition, which has also featured Sri Lanka, the tour has been dominated by repeated arguments between the countries. The simmering tension boiled over in the second Test, in Sydney in January, when Harbhajan was suspended for three matches after Mike Procter, the match referee, ruled that he had racially abused Symonds.

India appealed and the ban was overturned at a hearing before Justice John Hansen, a New Zealand High Court judge appointed by the ICC. Harbhajan said that instead of calling Symonds the racially inflammatory name “monkey”, he had given a similar-sounding crude term of abuse in his own language.

The dislike between Australia’s players and Harbhajan has a long history. The Punjabi bowler took 32 wickets in three Tests against Australia in 2001 as India came from behind to win the series 2-1. Yet in recent matches he has been more effective against Australia with the bat and his tongue than with the ball.

During a fractious one-day series last year, Harbhajan said that “there is nothing gentlemanly about the way [Australia] play” and called them “vulgar” for their repeated sledging. In 1998, Harbhajan committed the first of his five breaches of the ICC code of conduct by abusing Ricky Ponting, the present Australia captain, after having him stumped.

Hayden said in the radio interview that he had had “a bit of a long battle with Harbhajan. The first time I ever met him, he was the same little obnoxious weed that he is now. His record speaks for itself. There is a certain line that you can kind of go to and then you know where you push it – and he just pushes it all the time. That’s why he has been charged more than anyone that’s ever played in the history of cricket.”

In fact, Harbhajan is only sixth on the list of offenders in the past decade. Sourav Ganguly, who has been charged with 12 offences by the ICC, leads the way. In total, India have committed 43 offences since 1997. Australia, whose sledging and ultra-competitiveness have frequently attracted condemnation for going too far, have committed 25.

Hayden maintained his innocence after the three-hour hearing into his comments yesterday. “My intentions were never to denigrate cricket or anyone,” he said. “In the spirit of our own code of behaviour and the great game of cricket, I respect and accept the decision.”

Niranjan Shah, the secretary of the Board of Control for Cricket in India, said that the matter was closed and that the board would not seek any further action against Hayden. However, Harbhajan could not resist more needle, saying that Australia were resorting to verbal abuse because they were afraid of being beaten. “The Aus-sies maybe realise that they are no more the undisputed champs,” he said.

Australia won the Test series 2-1. The teams will meet in Sydney on Sunday in the first of a possible three matches in the final of the CB series.

— Counties lining up overseas players for this summer could be hit by the ECB’s stance over the rebel Indian Cricket League. In a press release yesterday, the ECB said that it was “determined to disassociate” itself from such events and believes that it can reject players not in possession of a No Objection Certificate from their home boards. Players potentially affected include Mushtaq Ahmed, despite the Pakistani leg spinner being a fixture at Sussex, Rana Naved-ul-Hasan, the Pakistan fast bowler who was on his way to Yorkshire, and Shane Bond, the former New Zealand pace bowler signed by Hampshire.

‘I like the idea of getting him in a ring – let’s bring that one on’

This is an edited transcript of Matthew Hayden’s interview with four presenters, three male and one female, from a Brisbane radio station

Presenter (male): How are you, mate?

Hayden: I’m OK, thanks. A bit weary, but I’m OK.

Presenter (male): Have you read the paper? The Indians are back into your blokes for being bullies.

Hayden: That’s because they’re losing every game that they’re playing out here at this stage.

Presenter (female): Why don’t they just shut up and play cricket?

Hayden: There you go, Sami, that’s the most logical thing I have ever heard this summer.

Presenter (male): Were you charging Harbhajan Singh the other day and calling him Mad Boy as you were batting?

Hayden: No, Bad Boy.

Presenter (male): Oh, Bad Boy . . .

Hayden: YOU BAD BOY [laughter].

Presenter (male): That’s offensive, apparently, in India.

Hayden: He took offence to that. I thought that was quite funny. I said: “Mate, you should be flattered, it’s a clothing range.”

Presenter (female): Why don’t you get to the root of the problem?

Presenter (male): Well, Matt probably said that to him when he hoisted him over the fence for six.

Hayden: It’s been a long battle with Harbhajan. The first time I ever met him he was the same little obnoxious weed he is now.

Presenter (male): Oh, Haydos!

Presenter (male): I’ve heard that about him from every person that’s ever had a dealing with him.

Hayden: I think his record sort of speaks for itself in cricket. There’s a certain line you can go to and then you know where you push it and he just keeps pushing it all the time, so that’s why he’s been charged more than anyone that’s ever played in the history of cricket.

Presenter (male): And [Ishant] Sharma, that big, tall, long-haired pace man that got stuck into Symo [Andrew Symonds] the other night, he’s gone to the same school, has he?

Hayden: Oh, well, I think he’s just young and, as I’ve said to him many times: “Mate, you’re 19. Just take it easy.” He says [mock Indian accent]: “Well, yes, but I’m playing for my country [laughs].” I said to him: “Mate, we’re all playing for our country, but at the end of the day you’re 19. What about just worrying about your bowling for a while?” I like the idea of actually getting him in a ring. I like that – let’s bring that one on.

Bad boys league

Players ruled against by the ICC for disciplinary offences since 1997

Sourav Ganguly (India, 12)

Inzamam-ul-Haq (Pakistan, 11)

Shoaib Akhtar (Pakistan, 7)

Graeme Smith (South Africa, 6)

Glenn McGrath (Australia, 6)

Harbhajan Singh (India, 5)

Team offences since 1997

India 43; Pakistan 39; South Africa 27; Australia 25; England 21; Sri Lanka 18; Zimbabwe 15; New Zealand 14; West Indies 13