Lee refutes India spats

Brett Lee

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Australia seamer Brett Lee has downplayed the latest on-field controversy with India after claiming players from both teams have quite strong friendships.

The latest flare-up occurred in Sunday's one-day international at the Sydney Cricket Ground with reports Matthew Hayden referred to Indian spinner Harbhajan Singh as "mad boy."

India bowler Ishant Sharma also faced a disciplinary hearing after the match and was fined 15 per cent of his match fee for a face-off with Andrew Symonds.

The incident prompted India's management to lodge an official complaint with International Cricket Council match referee Jeff Crowe following Australia's "provocative' behaviour.

But Lee, who was rested from Sunday's match, denied his team-mates had "stepped over the line" and insisted Australia's battles with India are being played in the right spirit.

"I don't have a problem with the way the Australians and Indians get on, it's fantastic," said Lee. "There's a few little things that have happened, sure, and everyone knows that, but the bond that we've got between the two teams is brilliant.

"The whole mental disintegration is like a way to try and overcome your opponent, that's happened in Test match cricket for a long, long time and now it's happening in one-day cricket.

"It's a matter of going out there and trying to play the hardest possible cricket you know you can providing that we don't step over that line and we definitely haven't done that."

Lee said the fact several Australian players are set to play alongside their Indian counterparts in the upcoming Indian Premier League would only enhance relationships between the two sides.

"If you see the way we get on with the Indian cricket team off the field, it's a totally different story," he added.

"As soon as we walk over that white line we're competitive and we play as hard as we can, but off the field there has been some amazing friendships formed over the past couple of months."