Nottingham: Former England captain Michael Vaughan, an Ashes winner, has promised to be “discreet and careful” when tweeting about the India players.

Speaking to The Telegraph at Trent Bridge, on Sunday afternoon, Vaughan said: “I didn’t question (V.V.S.) Laxman’s integrity yesterday... Laxman’s a good friend and I’m sure things will stay that way...

“The point I wanted to make, and I’d like everybody to have a sense of humour, is that Hot-Spot isn’t the perfect technology... I didn’t say that Laxman used vaseline to ‘beat’ the Hot-Spot... I asked the question, but my issue is with the technology, not with Laxman... I don’t understand this controversy.”

For the record, the contentious tweet read: “Has Vaseline on the outside edge saved the day for Laxman???” It was posted after England lost a referral off James Anderson. Then on 27, Laxman went on to score 54.

Vaughan felt former India captain Sunil Gavaskar had, like so many, reacted too strongly. “Come on, it’s not for lawyers to get involved... However, given the reaction to that tweet, I’ll be discreet and careful when tweeting about the India players... I’d like you to play down the entire affair, for I meant absolutely no offence.”

Gavaskar, though, stood his ground. “You don’t joke with somebody’s integrity... If I was Laxman, I’d get my lawyer to study Vaughan’s first tweet,” he maintained.

The England team moved fast on the tweet, with Stuart Broad telling the media: “I had a cheeky feel of Laxman’s bat... There was no vaseline, no liquid on it... Hot-Spot isn’t showing up the faint edges.”

Perhaps, because Vaughan was then just two years old, he didn’t recall England’s own Vaselinegate, on the 1976-77 tour of India. That’s when seamer John Lever, who grabbed 10 wickets on debut (at the Kotla) was accused of using vaseline during the Test series.

Vaughan, of course, does need to be discreet and careful, for he’d been off the mark on the toss bit in the World Cup final, a few months ago.