Modi releases unseen IPL clip showing Harbhajan slapping Sreesanth

Seventeen years after a postmatch altercation that shocked Indian cricket, former Indian Premier League commissioner Lalit Modi on late August made public an unseen video showing Harbhajan Singh slapping S Sreesanth at the end of an IPL match in Mohali on April 25, 2008. The clip, played during a podcast hosted by former Australia captain Michael Clarke, rekindled debate over the episode known as slapgate and prompted sharp responses from the participants and others connected to the original incident.

The footage, which Modi said he recorded on a private security camera, shows players exchanging handshakes after Kings XI Punjab defeated Mumbai Indians by 66 runs. Modi and others say Harbhajan called Sreesanth over and struck him with the back of his hand. The match broadcast had cut away to commercials at the time and only later showed images of Sreesanth in tears, a frame that remained the public record for nearly two decades.

Modi defended his decision to release the clip, saying he answered a direct question on the podcast and felt compelled to tell the truth. Modi said Sreesanth was the victim and that he had not tried to minimize Harbhajan's role. Harbhajan has strongly...