Aussies convinced tour will go on despite India call off

The Board of Cricket Control of India (BCCI) suspended its team's involvement in the current tour pending an appeal against spinner Harbhajan Singh's three-match ban for racial abuse.

However, Cricket Australia chief executive officer James Sutherland said the remaining two Tests of the series were scheduled to progress as planned.

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"Cricket Australia and the Indian cricket board, the BCCI, are continuing to discuss issues arising during the recent Sydney Test between Australia and India," Sutherland said.

"However, those discussions have not included any advice that the tour will not continue.

"There are a number of difficult and complex issues that have arisen out of the match and are the source of ongoing discussion.

"It's understandable in many respects that emotions are still running high after a match like that."

Sutherland was confident both teams would soon put the past few days behind and focus on the third Test beginning in Perth on January 16.

"I think that ... emotions have run high on various issues arising out of this match and I'm sure in the cold hard light of day the two captains can get together and discuss any residual differences that may be existing."

The Indian team, who were stranded on the team bus for over an hour as they awaited a directive from the board, remained bunkered down in their Sydney hotel.

The BCCI will await the outcome of Harbhajan's appeal of a three-match ban before deciding on its next course of action - the tourists are scheduled to play a two-day match against an ACT Invitational XI in the Australian capital starting on Thursday.

Harbhajan's suspension at a hearing after the match was the final straw for the tourists who already felt aggrieved by a number of suspect decisions from umpires Steve Bucknor and Mark Benson, which severely hampered their efforts in an at times bitter encounter.

India's mild-mannered skipper Anil Kumble also claimed Australia had violated the "spirit of the game".

BCCI chief administrative officer Ratnakar Shetty has claimed the allegations of racist abuse against Harbhajan are based on "hearsay".

Harbhajan was banned for three Tests by match referee Mike Procter after he was alleged to have called Andrew Symonds - the only non-white player in the Australian team - a "monkey".

"We have put up some issues which that are going to be taken up with the ICC in the appeal because we are totally against these charges levelled against Harbhajan Singh," Shetty told BBC Radio Five Live.

"He says he has not said what has been alleged and the match referee has made out a case based on hearsay.

"There are two Australian cricketers who said they heard him saying the particular word and their are two Indian cricketers who said he has not said it.

"Sachin Tendulkar for one definitely refuses to accept that he has heard this word.

"So I don't understand how the match referee could arrive at the conclusion based on the conclusion of two players because there is no other evidence."

Shetty maintained that the tour travel itinerary has been put on hold while India submit a formal appeal against the decision to ban the 27-year-old spinner.

He also claimed that the umpiring in the tour had been of a particularly poor standard which had led to ill feeling in the match.

"It is not the suspension of the tour - we have asked the team to stay back in Sydney because was have to complete the formalities of filing an appeal," Shetty added.

"In the written report of the match the referee has revealed just a couple of facts and we need some time to file against that decision.

"The whole world has seen on the live TV coverage that it was Symonds who first started the discussion and what went on was an exchange of words between the two.

"The umpiring has been extremely poor in this Test match and I think what everybody has seen over the five days of the match is that fate of this match has been decided by the umpires not by the players."