As the Sydney furore finally settles down with the lifting of ban on Indian off-spinner Harbhajan Singh, Australian pace spearhead Brett Lee urged the two teams to learn from the controversy and move on for the sake of cricket's future.
"I still believe Australian cricket and cricketers are respected and as long as everyone learns from the fall out of Sydney, I think we will be in a better place," Lee told PTI in an interview from Adelaide.
"If I can see a positive out of it I am sure the two teams will have more of an appreciation of cultures," he added.
The bitter episode is finally drawing to a close with the ICC-appointed appeals commissioner New Zealand judge Justice John Hansen lifting the three-Test ban on Harbhajan for racist abuse by downgrading the charge against him.
The controversy has threatened to jeopardise Australian players' commercial interests like product endorsements in India.
Lee looked to be the biggest loser as he is the official brand ambassador of American watch giants Timex in India besides having interests in Bollywood and music projects but the pacer remains confident that his image and brand value were still intact in the country, which he often refers to as his second home.
"I was not concerned with the recent controversy as far as being their brand ambassador (Timex's) was concerned," he said in an e-mail interview.
The company also insisted that Lee's image has not been affected by the drama and they would persist with him as the face of their brand.
"Brett is not only a great athlete and sportsperson but also a talented and fashionable individual," Timex Group President Salil Sadanandan said.
Looking back at the controversy, Lee said it would not have snowballed into such a huge crisis had umpiring been good in the Sydney Test.
"Whilst I don't feel we conducted ourselves poorly, the closeness of the match coupled with a few contentious umpiring decisions 'magnified' the issues and these may have a been a 'straw that broke the camel's back'," he pointed out.
The affable speedster also brushed aside suggestions that the episode would have an effect on his equation with the Indians.
"I enjoy (the company) of Sachin (Tendulkar), (VVS) Laxman and (Rahul) Dravid. They are good blokes and I have spent a lot of time with them off the field particularly Sachin and Laxman. It would be fair to say we enjoy each others company," he said.
