Harbhajan Singh and Andrew Symonds: The infamous Monkeygate continues to haunt those who featured in that controversial Test at Syndey in 2008. Harbhajan was accused of calling Symonds a monkey during the Test and was suspended for three Tests. But he was cleared in an appeal hearing, conducted by Justice John Hansen from New Zealand, in which Tendulkar appeared as a witness and gave a statement in favour of the Indian. Pic/AFP

S. Sreesanth and Harbhajan Singh: Now infamously referred to as slapgate the Indian off-spinner allegedly slapped the erratic Sreesanth after an Indian Premier League season one match between Mumbai Indians and Kings XI Punjab at Mohali in April 2008. Sreesanth was seen sobbing like a child post the slap while Harbhajan went on to be banned for 11 IPL matches

Ishant Sharma and the Sri Lankan team: During the fourth day of the third and final Test match between India and Sri Lanka, Ishant Sharma taunted pacer Dhammika Prasad while taking a single after the latter exhausted his quota of bouncers in the over. Ishant began tapping his head to signal Prasad to take aim there. This followed by a war-of-words between the two. Things did not end there as Lanka s Dinesh Chandimal nudged Ishant while passing him during the spat. This infuriated R Ashwin and later on, Lahiru Thirimanne too joined the clash. The umpires then advised Angelo Mathews to calm his players down

Ishant again... and Kamran Akmal: A usually calm Ishant Sharma lost his cool when he got into a nasty war or words with Pakistan keeper-batsman Kamran Akmal during the Indo-Pak T20 clash in Bangalore in December 2012. As they hurled abuses at each other in the middle of the pitch, the umpires and few teammates had to try and separate the two.

Shahid Afridi and Gautam Gambhir: Indo-Pak clashes are always highly volatile. Afridi and Gambhir got entangled in a heated verbal exchange after crashing into each other while the latter attempted to steal a single during the ODI at the Green Park in Kanpur in 2007. The umpires had to intervene, and separate the two. Pic/MiD-DAY Archives

Kieron Pollard and Mitchell Starc: An extremely unpleasant incident took place between the two players during an IPL match between RCB and MI at the Wankhede Stadium in May 2014. During an over, Starc continued with his delivery stride despite Pollard pulling out. As the Aussie fired the ball at the West Indian, the batsman advanced menacingly towards Starc and flung his willow at the bowler but, luckily, it slipped out of the Trinidadian s hand and dropped near him. In the previous ball, after bowling a bouncer that sailed over Pollard s head, Starc mouthed something, which the big-built West Indian simply brushed away with a wave of his hand

Javed Miandad and Dennis Lillee: Both high profile players got physical when Miandad and Mansoor Akhtar were trying to do a repair job after Pakistan were reduced to 27 for 2 during the Perth Test in 1981. According to Cricinfo, Miandad turned Lillee behind square for a single, and in completing an easy run, he collided with the bowler. Eyewitnesses agreed that Lillee was to blame and most observed that he had deliberately moved into the batsman s path. The two players versions of events differ. Miandad claimed that Lillee blocked him and pushed him out of the way , Lillee s version of events has Miandad subjecting him to abuse as he approached and Lillee replying in kind -- no mention of any contact. PIC COURTESY/PBL MARKETING

Steve Waugh and Curtly Ambrose: This is a rather famous incident from the 1995 Test at Trinidad between Australia and West Indies. During one of his fiery spells, Ambrose kept giving Waugh his renowned stares every time he beat the bat. Not one to back down, Tugga replied with a verbal volley What the f*** are you looking at? An enraged Ambrose threatened to beat the daylight out of Waugh, but Windies captain Richie Richardson intervened and saved the day. Pic/Getty Images

Shane Warne and Marlon Samuels: The Australian star and West Indian batsman were involved in a foul-mouthed clash during the domestic Big Bash tournament in January 2013. Warne, captaining the Melbourne Stars against city rivals Renegades in the domestic Big Bash tournament, was furious that Samuels had pulled back David Hussey when the batsman was turning for a second run. And when it was Samuel s turn to bat later in the game, Warne confronted the West Indian with the words f**k you, Marlon. In the next over, Warne, in the field, threw the ball at the Jamaican s chest while Samuels reacted by tossing his bat down the pitch towards the Australian. The two players squared up and had to be separated by the umpires

George Bailey, James Anderson and Michael Clarke: During the Brisbane Test in 2013, Michael Clarke was fined 20 per cent of his match fee after being caught by a stump microphone telling the England fast bowler to expect a broken arm. The usually mild-mannered Clarke also wagged his finger in a close-up confrontation with Anderson, a renowned sledger, with the umpires needing to step in to cool tempers. As a member of the Nine Network s commentary team, however, Shane Warne had access to all the stump microphone recordings and tweeted that Anderson had actually threatened Bailey, who was fielding in close, with a punch to the face

Luis Suarez and Giorgio Chiellini: During the FIFA 2014 World Cup, Uruguayan striker Suarez bit Italian defender Chiellini during their group stage match. Uruguay went on to win the game and secure a spot in the next round. In 2013, Suarez received a 10-match ban after he bit Chelsea player Branislav Ivanovic during their EPL clash. (Pic/ AFP)

Zinedine Zidane and Marco Materazzi: Marco Materazzi will always be known for the infamous Zidane headbutt incident during the 2006 FIFA World Cup final. During extra-time with the scores levelled 1-1, football legend Zidane aggressively headbutted Marco Materazzi following the latter s provocation and shirt-tugging. Playing in his final international match, Zidane was sent off by the referee and Italy went on to win the World Cup. (Pic/ AFP)

James Anderson and Ravindra Jadeja: We haven t heard the last of this yet. It all began with the Indian team filing a complaint against the England fast bowler, alleging he had pushed Jadeja as the two sides headed for lunch on day two at Trent Bridge. England retaliated by filing a complaint of their own against Jadeja. With neither side willing to back down, things could get uglier

John Terry and Carlos Tevez: During the Champions League 2008 final between Manchester United and Chelsea, John Terry allegedly spat on Man United striker Carlos Tevez, although it looked much like snort rather than saliva. The Chelsea skipper vehemently denied it although Tevez s jersey claimed otherwise. (Pic/ AFP)

Mike Tyson and Evander Holyfield: Unarguably one of the most unforgettable moments in sports history was when boxing star Mike Tyson bit World heavyweight champion Holyfield twice during the title rematch in 1997. Tyson was later disqualified and the incident scarred his career for life. (Pic/ AFP)

Michael Slater and Rahul Dravid: During the 2001 Test at Mumbai s Wankhede Stadium between India and Australia, Dravid hit one ball in the direction of Slater, who dived and claimed the catch. The unconvinced Indian legend refused to walk, the third umpire also ruled him not out based on the benefit of doubt. This did not go down too well with Aussie opener, who went on an unnecessary rampage

Ramnaresh Sarwan and Glenn McGrath: This was as nasty as it gets. West Indies were marching towards the highest chase in Test history at Antigua in 2003. In an endeavour to unsettle Sarwan, McGrath questioned, What does Brian Lara s d--k taste like? Sarwan s reply was I don t know, ask your wife. This incensed the hot-headed Aussie fast bowler, and what followed were some angry exchanges and finger-pointing

Shoaib Malik and Tino Best: Aggressive West Indies pacer Tino Best and former Pakistan batsman Shoaib Malik were recently involved in an ugly altercation with the two of them coming to blows at the Kensington Oval in a T20 match during a Caribbean Premier League. Indian tennis star Sania Mirza jumped to her husband Shoaib s defence and also tweeted that she had wished Shoaib had hit Tino. Reports also emerged that the two players were involved in another incident at the team hotel. (Pic/ AFP)

Pele and Diego Maradona: The rivalry between two of football s biggest legends Pele and Maradona, never faded into the dark. FIFA conducted an internet poll to determine the A footballer of the century . Maradona won it, however, later on, FIFA altered the process of choosing the winner and Pele was then chosen. Ever since then, the two have been on a roll at taking potshots at each other. (Pic/ Getty Images)

Frank Rijkaard and Rudi Voller: One of the most famous football spats occurred during a match between Holland and Germany during the second round of the FIFA 1990 World Cup. Following a fierce tackle, Holland s Rijkaard spat on Germany s Voller and was booked for the same. Later on, when a yellow-carded-Voller went in on the goalie, Rijkaard took him on again and the two were sent off. Knowing the worst is done with, Rijkaard took another shot and repeated the act again by spitting on Voller. (Pic/ AFP)

Samuel Eto o and Roger Milla: Frank Rijkaard and Rudi Voller: Roger Milla took a potshot at Cameroon footballer Samuel Eto o claiming that the latter has only performed for his clubs and not for the country. Eto o retaliated by stating that Milla has been fortunate to have a long career, but still did not win the World Cup despite being part of a great team. (Pic/ AFP)