Indian stars set to miss New Zealand tour over inappropriate comments about women

India's Hardik Pandya, right, shakes hands with umpire Richard Kettleborough. Photo / AP

India's KL Rahul and Hardik Pandya have been suspended pending an inquiry into comments they made about women on a TV talk show this week, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has announced.

Batsman Rahul and all-rounder Pandya have been heavily criticised in India and on social media for remarks that have been widely condemned as sexist and inappropriate.

The length of their suspensions is not known, but the duo look set to miss the one-day international series in Australia, starting today, and the limited-overs tour of New Zealand.

The Committee of Administrators (CoA) asked the pair to explain the comments and Pandya apologised but after considering their reply, the BCCI decided to charged both players for misconduct and indiscipline.

"The duo is now called upon to provide an explanation as to why they should not be proceeded against for misconduct and indiscipline under Rule 41 of the BCCI Constitution within a period of 7 (seven) days," the BCCI said in a statement on Friday.

The pair got themselves in hot water when appearing on Indian television show Koffee with Karan, hosted by Bollywood producer Karan Johar.

When probed about their lives off the field Pandya proudly spoke of showing off his many flames to his parents.

"The other day there was a party," Pandya said, "My parents are sitting there and (referring to the female guests) they're like, 'Which one is yours?' and I sat with them and said, 'This, this this, everyone's got something with me.'

He also mentioned he felt "West Indian in spirit" earlier in the interview.

Pandya answered a question about he approached women in nightclubs in this way: "I like to watch and observe how they move. I'm a little from the black side so I need to see how they move."

pic.twitter.com/O0UlpFm43o

— hardik pandya (@hardikpandya7) January 9, 2019

Pandya said he "got a bit carried away" as he explained his bragging about his prowess with women on the show.

"After reflecting on my comments on Koffee with Karan, I would like to apologise to everyone concerned who I may have hurt in any way," Pandya said on Twitter.

"Honestly, I got a bit carried away with the nature of the show. In no way did I mean to disrespect or hurt anyone's sentiments. Respect."

Ahead of Saturday's first ODI against Australia in Sydney, India captain Virat Kohli said the comments made by the Rahul and Pandya are not supported by their teammates.

"From the Indian cricket team point of view, any inappropriate comments that are made in that scenario are something that we definitely don't support," Kohli told reporters.

"The two concerned players felt what has gone wrong and they have understood the magnitude. It has to hit anyone hard, they will definitely understand the things that have not gone right.

"These are purely individual opinions … we definitely, as the Indian cricket team, do not support views like that and that has been communicated."

Kohli's side sealed its first Test series victory in Australia this week when the fourth match ended in a draw.

"Definitely not going to dampen anything that we've achieved," he said. "You have to adjust with the situation. We need to go out there and play cricket. All these external factors are not going to derail our motivation or the preparation for the World Cup."