Ending years of defiance, BCCI finally comes under ambit of NADA 

Now, all Indian cricketers will also be tested by the anti-doping agency.

Even some of the biggest names in Indian cricket will go through testing | Getty

Sports Secretary Radheshyam Jhulaniya did announce on Friday (August 9) that the BCCI has finally agreed to come under the ambit of the National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA). 

Meaning, even Indian cricketers will now be tested by the organisation, just like it does the rest of the country's sportsperson. 

The secretary confirmed the development after a meeting with BCCI CEO Rahul Johri and said the Indian cricket board has submitted in writing that it will stick to the anti-doping guidelines of NADA.

"All cricketers will now be tested by NADA," Jhulaniya was quoted as saying by PTI. "The BCCI raised three issues before us about the quality of the dope testing kits, competence of pathologists and sample collection."

"We assured them that whatever facilities they want, we will provide but there will be some charge for it. BCCI is no different from others."

The meeting saw a breakthrough resolution of longstanding indifferences between BCCI and NADA over norms related to doping. 

BCCI's anti-doping mechanisms were heavily criticised by Indian sports ministry in the past, to which the board had responded by accusing the government of not granting NOCs to South Africa’s A and women’s teams for their visas.

Truth be told, the cricket body's anti-doping set-up was under widespread scrutiny ever since Prithvi Shaw got found guilty of inhaling an illegal substance and was suspended for eight months. 

The BCCI release in this matter stated that the 19-year-old Test cricketer had "inadvertently ingested a prohibited substance, which can be commonly found in cough syrups."

Shaw's ban was controversially announced backdated as it runs from March 16 until November 15 but he featured in the IPL for Delhi Capitals in April-May. 

Shaw provided a urine sample as part of the BCCI’s anti-doping testing programme during the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy on February 22, 2019 in Indore. His sample was subsequently tested and found containing terbutaline.

"Terbutaline, a specified substance, is prohibited both In and Out of Competition in the WADA Prohibited List of Substances," the BCCI release had said. 

(Inputs from PTI)

 
 

By Kashish Chadha - 09 Aug, 2019

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