Australian cricket went into full damage control mode on Thursday to preserve good relations with India after an incident at the Champions' Trophy presentation last Sunday.

The Australian players have been under fire for their treatment of Indian board president Sharad Pawar.

Damien Martyn has offered an apology for nudging Pawar out of the way as the Australians posed for their victory photographs on the presentation dais in Mumbai on Sunday night.

Cricket Australia has also made an appointment for captain Ricky Ponting to ring Pawar overnight to pass on his apologies for any offence.

Ponting said he had tried about a dozen times to reach Pawar on Wednesday without success.

The Australian captain said he was unaware of any problems until he returned to Australia on Tuesday and did not see television footage of the incident until Thursday morning.

"It doesn't look great on television, but I think the more times you look at it, you probably realise that there's no intent to offend anybody," he said.

"We all probably got a little bit caught up in the excitement of the moment.

"That's why I think it's so important for me to be in personal contact (with Pawar) and if there is anything lingering on to get it sorted out as quickly as we can."

Cricket Australia CEO James Sutherland admitted the episode had the potential to damage the image of the Australian team.

"I think it's definitely a concern about how this has been perceived in India," he told AAP.

"I think everyone in Australia sees and understands that it was certainly an unfortunate incident and can perhaps understand to some extent how it may have happened.

"The disrespect that people have gathered from this is obviously more heartfelt in India and that's something that we need to accept and obviously deal with."

Sutherland said CA chairman Creagh O'Connor had also had trouble reaching Pawar, but had spoken to the BCCI's senior vice-president IS Bindra on Thursday to pass on Australia's concern.

The incident comes at a sensitive time for Indian cricket, which is mourning the loss of Polly Umrigar, one of the nation's greatest batsmen, captains and administrators, who died this week at the age of 80.

Sutherland said the Australian team would be visiting India frequently in the coming years.

"There'll be plenty of opportunity for them to make amends and to show the Indian public what they really think about India and its people."

Brought to you by AAP © 2024 AAP