Former IPL commissioner Lalit Modi took the cricketing world by storm last week as he made the video of the 'slap-gate' row, involving Harbhajan Singh and Sreesanth, public.
Notably, Harbhajan had found himself engulfed in a huge controversy after he slapped Sreesanth during one of the matches in the inaugural edition of Indian Premier League.
Speaking on the latest episode of ex-Australian captain Michael Clarke’s Beyond23 Podcast, Modi released the footage of the slap-gate in the aftermath of an IPL 2008 clash between Mumbai Indians and Punjab Kings (then Kings XI Punjab).
In the never-seen-before clip, Harbhajan could be seen slapping Sreesanth with the back of his hand during the post-match handshakes.
Sreesanth was left in tears after the incident, being consoled by his captain and Sri Lankan legend Mahela Jayawardene. Harbhajan then once again proceeded to return towards Sreesanth, making an animated gesture before Irfan Pathan and Mahela diffused the situation.
Former India wicketkeeper Farokh Engineer, who served as the match referee in that particular IPL fixture, has expressed surprise that the Harbhajan-Sreesanth slap-gate video has been made public after 17 years in the archives.
"I'm surprised that the footage has emerged after all these years. As match referee for that particular match, I maintained confidentiality throughout and didn't speak about the contents of the incident even to the best of my friends in the media," Engineer told mid-day.
"I had a job to do as match referee and I believe I did it [well] with dignified silence. It’s a thing of the past, and I’m sure both players have long buried their differences. Like many other things in cricket, it was done in the heat of the moment. Harbhajan is a good friend. We move on," he added.
Sreesanth's wife, Bhuvneshwari, has already expressed her displeasure with Modi and Clarke when she posted a scathing Instagram story.
Bhuvneshwari highlighted that both players have moved on from the episode as she termed the act as "disgusting, heartless and inhuman". She went on to tell Modi and Clarke to fear God, accusing them of causing pain to families and innocent children for their own benefit.
