THE India left-arm fast bowler Zaheer Khan has been given a massive fine by the ICC for his disgraceful antics during the 320-run victory over Australia in the second Test at Mohali.

======STOP SUMMARY=====

The umpires reported Khan for giving a 'send-off' to the Australian opener Matthew Hayden after his dismissal, lbw to Harbhajan Singh in the over before lunch on the fourth day. The ICC noted that Khan ran from his fielding position and circled the batsman, shouting at him in an aggressive manner before returning to his team-mates.

Tim Nielsen, Australia's coach, shrugged off the incident as "a bit of by-play", but Chris Broad, the referee, saw it differently, fining Khan 80 per cent of his match fee. Khan pleaded guilty to a Level 2 charge under clause C1 of the ICC Code of Conduct, which states that players "shall at all times conduct play within in the spirit of the game as well as within the Laws of Cricket".

Broad said: "Clearly, this sort of behaviour is not acceptable at any level of cricket – it showed a lack of respect for the player who had been dismissed. Respect for the opposition was something that we talked about in the pre-series meeting I had with both captains, and so it was disappointing that Zaheer behaved in this way.

"However, in considering the penalty, I took into account the fact that Zaheer had a good disciplinary record. He also pleaded guilty at the first opportunity and was very apologetic while also promising not to repeat the offence."

CHARLIE SAYS: Zaheer Khan must have been very pumped to act in this way, and it seems bad blood remains between these two teams after the sledging rows during the series in Australia at the start of this year. The on-field behaviour became so bad that even Australia's Prime Minister Kevin Rudd felt obliged to comment. "Cricket is a tough and competitive business, but you can conduct it with a bit of civility," he said.