NEW DELHI, (Reuters) – India’s cricket board, under fire for rejecting the World Anti-Doping Agency’s (WADA) “whereabouts” clause, wants to introduce its own testing system for domestic players from next year, local media reported on Tuesday.
“This year, the BCCI (Board of Control for Cricket in India) will first educate every association about dope testing,” chief administrative officer Ratnakar Shetty told the Indian Express.
“We can’t just issue templates of WADA and expect them to read it. The language used by WADA is difficult to understand, so we’ll be hiring experts to give lectures on this,” he said.
The BCCI has stirred a controversy after backing national players on Sunday over their refusal to sign up to the WADA clause, which requires them to inform their whereabouts on a daily basis for three months in advance.
Other major cricketing nations have signed up, but the influential Indian board says its players have privacy and security concerns and tests should not be done during the off-season.
The board and players have faced sharp criticism even from within the cricket-mad nation, with sports minister Manohar Singh Gill urging them to “happily” accept the WADA rules.
The BCCI feels cricket, seen as a low-risk sport for doping but due to make its debut in next year’s Asian Games, needs its own set of rules.
The International Cricket Council (ICC) has referred the Indian stand to its board.
