'Monkeygate' well and truly gone, says Ponting

After questioning Sachin Tendulkar's conduct during the 'Monkeygate' scandal inquiry in his autobiography, former Australia captain Ricky Ponting now says he has made peace with the key Indian characters in the ugly episode during his stint in the Indian Premier League

Ponting, who, in his book, At the Close of Play, said he was taken aback by Tendulkar's statement which backed Harbhajan Singh in the furore, said the matter is behind him now.

"I had to captain Harbhajan and Sachin, and (the then Indian captain Anil (Kumble) was the mentor/coach. They wouldn't have had me there if that (Monkeygate) hadn't passed over," Ponting told ESPNcricinfo.

"And Anil hasn't said anything about being angry or anything like that; it's just about moving on and 'wait until my book'.

Ponting, however, maintained that Tendulkar changed his stance during the scandal a couple of times.

"I didn't have any problem with them. Sachin was trying to look after his mate and changed his story a couple of times to suit.

"Harbhajan was the one there was a problem with, but we got to Mumbai, looked each other in the eye and shook hands and said we'll make this work for the next couple of months. That's well and truly gone," he said.

But Ponting said the pain of all-rounder Andrew Symonds, who alleged that Harbhajan racially abused him, has remained.

"The worst of it all was the impact it had on Symmo (Symonds)," Ponting wrote in the book.

"I had tried to protect him from most of what was going on in the lead-up to the hearing, but when it was done I reckon it took the wind out of his sails. In many ways Symmo was gone from this moment on and it still makes me angry."