Hogg faces offensive remark charge

MUMBAI, India (Reuters) - Australia spinner Brad Hogg has been charged with making an offensive remark to India captain Anil Kumble and vice-captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni on the final day of the ill-tempered second test in Sydney on Sunday.

The 36-year-old was summoned to a hearing, chaired by match referee Mike Procter, after he was charged by India team manager Chetan Chauhan, the International Cricket Council (ICC) said in a statement on Tuesday.

Hosts Australia won the match by 122 runs to equal their own record of 16 consecutive test victories.

The win was overshadowed by poor umpiring and a ban on India spinner Harbhajan Singh for racially abusing Australia all-rounder Andrew Symonds.

Hogg's alleged offence falls under the same category as Harbhajan's --- 3.3 of the ICC code of conduct --- which refers to players or team officials "using language or gestures that offends, insults, humiliates, intimidates, threatens, disparages or vilifies another person on the basis of that person's race, religion, gender, colour, descent, or national or ethnic origin".

The penalty for a Level 3 offence is a ban of between two and four test matches or between four and eight one-day internationals, the statement said.

The preliminary date for the hearing is set for Jan 14 in Perth, two days prior to the third test.

(Reporting by Sanjay Rajan; editing by Miles Evans)