Melbourne: Regretting his “obnoxious weed” remark on Harbhajan Singh, Australian opener Matthew Hayden said he made a mistake and was keen to patch up with the Indian off-spinner.

Hayden was sad that his poor choice of words added “fuel to the fire” as India’s tour Down Under this summer was already packed with controversies.

“I don’t know how Harbhajan is feeling but he made it clear how he feels about our team. To put closure on my indiscretion (calling Harbhajan an “obnoxious little weed“), I could have used a different choice of words. In 15 years of cricket, I had a slip. It wasn’t to disgrace or denigrate Harbhajan,” Hayden said.

“I could have gone for a different turn of phrase. In the end all I did was put fuel on a fire that already existed. It wasn’t necessary. It was a mistake,” the burly Aussie opener told The Courier Mail.

On Harbhajan calling him a “big liar,” Hayden said he would like to talk to the offie and try to improve their relation. “What I’d like to is have a chat with Harbhajan when we get to India. I want to sit down with him and see if there is any way we can move forward with our relationship because it hasn’t been great. I’d like to see where he’s at and see if we can patch up our differences. Frankly, everyone is sick of it.”

Hayden, however, claimed that despite all the rows, the relationship between Indian and Australian cricketers had not hit rock bottom.

“No I don’t think so. Look, there’s definite tension, but if I was a spectator, that’s what I’d want to see. Rodney Hogg said it best during the summer when he said it’s not tiddlywinks.

“If I was a fan and I went to a game that was far from contrived but didn’t have a competitive edge, I’d be unimpressed straightway. There can be a sense of hypocrisy there. You know, I cross myself when I get 100, then I’m at first slip giving it to the Indians. At what point do you cross the line?”

Hayden said the Indians were “reasonably pleasant” but very competitive throughout the series.

“They were reasonably pleasant. In terms of general human relations, I wouldn’t say there was ill-feeling. India had four months out here. We rarely saw them other than at the ground. It’s play and get back into the cage.”

Looking forward to play in the Indian Premier League, Hayden said apart from the cash, the IPL would provide him valuable match practice before the tour of the West Indies. — PTI

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