Former Indian fast bowler and 2011 ODI World Cup winner S Sreesanth has spoken openly on the ‘Slapgate’ controversy during IPL 2008 after 18 years.
Sreesanth, who hails from Kerala, was speaking to a Malayalam news outlet and launched a scathing attack on former teammate and fellow World Cup winner Harbhajan Singh.
Both were part of the team together when India won the 2011 ODI World Cup on home soil under the captaincy of MS Dhoni. Both Sreesanth and Harbhajan were part of the playing eleven in the final of that tournament.
What is the ‘Slapgate’ controversy?
In the very first year of the IPL in 2008, ‘Slapgate’ became the first major controversy to engulf the league. This happened after the match between Kings XI Punjab (now Punjab Kings) and Mumbai Indians at the PCA International Stadium in Mohali. Punjab had won this match by a big victory of 66 runs.
After the match, TV cameras caught Punjab’s Sreesanth crying after being slapped by Harbhajan Singh during the post-match handshake. Harbhajan was the captain of MI at that time.
Following the incident, Harbhajan was banned for the remainder of the season and 100% of his match fee was deducted.
“I will scare you, but never forget”: Sreesanth
During the interview, Sreesanth talked about a recent incident where the controversy resurfaced. According to him, Harbhajan had acted in an advertisement where the incident was recreated through a comic lens.
He said that the off-spinner had asked him to share the video on his social media. He did not refuse and even said that Harbhajan has earned around Rs 1 crore by working in advertising.
“I have never talked about bhajji in any interview. This is going to be the first time.”
“There was no problem till recently, but they once again made an advertisement about it. They earned around Rs 80 lakh to Rs 1 crore from it. Then they called me and asked me to put up a story on it. I told them, ‘I will forgive but I will never forget. If someone does wrong to you, you should forgive them but never forget. If you forget, they will do the same thing again. He is the biggest example for that. There is no doubt about it.”
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“I have no relation with him”: Sreesanth on Harbhajan
In the same conversation, the fast bowler said that Harbhajan’s recent attempts at public reconciliation were mere lip service and there was no genuine remorse from his part.
“I have no relationship with that guy. I used to call him brother. But in the last 1 or 2 months he did that ad and now I have blocked him on Instagram.”
“My parents have taught me to forgive, but never forget. I have no grudge against them, nor do I need them. God bless them and their family. In many interviews, even with Ashwin, they talked about my daughter. People will think what a great person he is. He can be a great person. But for me from playing for India till now, in my opinion, it’s all an act. That act is something that Sreesanth Do not accept.”
The flames of ‘Slapgate’ flared up again last year
In 2025, former IPL chairman Lalit Modi had reignited the controversy by sharing the video of the incident in a podcast with former Australia captain Michael Clarke.
At the time, Harbhajan had said that it was a mistake which he regretted and wished he could take back, but it seems Sreesanth has made up his mind to have no part of it.
