The Ashes: Panesar Racially Abused By Fan

England's Ashes tour has barely begun but Monty Panesar has already suffered racial abuse, with a spokesman for the team yesterday confirming reports that a fan had called the spinner a "stupid Indian" on Sunday during the match against New South Wales in Sydney.

The incident took place while Panesar fielded near the boundary by the Clive Churchill Stand at the SCG. A journalist for the Sydney Daily Telegraph heard a fan shout: "Give us a wave Monty. You can't speak English you stupid Indian. I'll have to say it in Indian. What are you doing playing in the English side? You're not English." The newspaper also alleges that Panesar was abused during England's match against the Prime Minister's XI in Canberra last week. There have been no official complaints from the England set-up.

Asked about the reports, a spokesman for the England team said: "We were asked to confirm if the incident took place, and we have done." He also called on local fans to respect the touring team: "We have come out here to play the game with dignity and we expect the Australian fans will show the sportsmanship they are renowned for and hope they will respect the players both on and off the field."

But the fan involved will probably never be identified, with Peter Young, a spokesman for Cricket Australia, admitting last night that it will be extremely hard to identify him. "It's very hard to do anything after the event because the crowd's gone home and we don't know who it was," he said.

The incident will be galling for Australia's cricket authorities, whose efforts to prevent racial abuse have included trials of a text messaging system for reporting offensive behaviour, and who for the first time can impose life bans on offending fans. It is also immediate vindication for South Africa's Graeme Smith, who predicted that Panesar would be subjected to "an unbelievable amount of abuse".

Hours before the reports appeared, the Australian prime minister John Howard was asked about banter from the crowd. "I think it will be vigorous but in the best of humour," he said. Already, his optimism appears to have been misplaced.