Harbhajan Handed 11-match Ban

Harbhajan Singh has been banned for 11 games by the governing board of the Indian Premier League after he pleaded guilty to slapping his team-mate Sreesanth. The ban effectively means he will miss the remainder of the inaugural Indian Premier League unless his team, the Mumbai Indians, make it to the semi-finals. Given that they are currently bottom of the table, having lost all four of their games so far, that is extremely unlikely.

The controversy-dogged off-spinner had already been temporarily suspended while the IPL was investigating the allegation that he had slapped Sreesanth. Harbhajan now faces further punishment from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), which is keen to hold him to account as a contracted player.

Niranjan Shah, the BCCI secretary, has announced that a lawyer has been appointed to conduct a preliminary inquiry. A report will be submitted within 15 days to Sharad Pawar, the BCCI president, who will then refer the findings to the board's disciplinary committee for possible further action.

The incident occurred during a match against the Kings XI Punjab. Sreesanth approached Harbhajan, Mumbai's stand-in captain in the absence of the injured Sachin Tendulkar, and said: "Hard luck, better luck next time." What happened next was not witnessed by TV viewers, but shortly afterwards Sreesanth could be seen weeping on the outfield.

Condemnation in India has been fierce, all the more so because Harbhajan has been punished under the International Cricket Council's code of conduct on five previous occasions.

Click above to watch Sreesanth's reaction to the incident.