A spontaneously occurring male sterile condition was located in an inbred line Vg 272 of Pennisetum americanum. Male sterility was inherited as a monogenic recessive condition and showed independent assortment with hairy leaf surface phenotype. Transfer of male sterile allele to inbreds Vg 212 and IP 482 revealed no cytoplasmic effects on the expression of male sterility. Stigmas of the male sterile plants were found to possess the same amount of receptivity upto three days with normal seed set, upto six days with reduced seed set and almost with nil receptivity on the seventh day.