Sunday 15 May 2022 04:28 PM Harbhajan Singh pays tribute to Andrew Symonds 15 years after infamous ... trends now
The man behind the infamous 'Monkeygate' scandal that sent cricket great Andrew Symonds into an anger and alcohol-fueled spiral which cut short his Cricket Australia career has shared a tribute after his tragic death.
Harbhajan Singh tearfully apologised to Symonds in a Mumbai dressing room three years after the 2008 incident at the SCG where he allegedly sledged Symonds on the field by calling him a 'monkey'.
Symonds died after a single-vehicle auto accident on Saturday night near his home in Townsville at the age of 46.
'Shocked to hear about the sudden demise of Andrew Symonds. Gone too soon. Heartfelt condolences to the family and friends. Prayers for the departed soul,' Singh wrote to Twitter on Sunday.
Singh shared a tribute to Symonds (pictured) after he died in a car crash on Saturday
Harbhajan Singh and Symonds were involved in the 'Monkeygate' saga (Singh pictured with his wife Geeta Basra, who he married in 2015)
Symonds had been adopted into a white family as a youngster and had grown up in the Queensland town of Charters Towers, facing racism and alienation growing up.
The sledging and subsequent messy handling of the saga by cricket officials and vested interests dredged up complex emotions for Symonds who turned to drinking as a way to blow off steam.
Singh was originally given a three-match Test ban for incident after then Australian captain Ricky Ponting complained.
But this was overturned on appeal thanks largely to the Board of Control for Cricket in India after it flexed its considerable sway in the game.
Symonds later said that 2007-08 tour of India in which the crowd also hurled taunts, Singh's exoneration, and the messy court appeal process in which his teammates were 'dragged through the mud' led to his much-loved sport going from a haven to battlefield.
Andrew Symonds of Australia watches Harbhajan Singh of India bowl during day four of the Second Test match between Australia and India at the Sydney Cricket Ground on January 5, 2008 (pictured)
'I suppose this would be the moment where my whole persona to cricket changed,' Symonds said in a subsequent Fox Cricket documentary.
'I didn't realise the politics, the power until this moment in my career. How powerful one player, one incident (could be) and how much money was at stake and the ramifications.'
When Singh was cleared on appeal and his ban changed to a fine, Symonds and his teammates were admonished for causing the stir.
'The thing that was grinding on me the most was the lying,' Symonds later said.
'I had four of my good mates in there with me and we were made to look like idiots because this hadn't happened. And it had. Then the lies started, and it became political.
'The captain was made to look like a fool, and
