Like sportsmen from many other fields, the next time when Sachin Tendulkar goes on a vacation, he may have to inform the BCCI and the ICC as per the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) code, and could be subjected to a random out-of-competition test.

The BCCI has convened a meeting of its working committee on Sunday in Mumbai with a single-point agenda on table— “to discuss the ICC anti-doping policy”. Ever since the ICC adopted the anti-doping code on January 1, 2009 — almost three years after it became a signatory to the WADA regulations in July 2006 — it has become mandatory for ICC member countries to follow suit.

The ICC recently circulated a template anti-doping code for all its members to adopt “in order to help them to govern anti-doping matters at a domestic level in a consistent and WADA Code-compliant manner”. This has forced the BCCI to discuss the steps to be taken, including constituting a doping tribunal, and putting together a routine for testing players, among others.

According to ICC’s anti-doping policy, BCCI has to form a three-member panel, independent of the board. Of the three members, “the chairman is required to be legally qualified while the others on the tribunal having legal, medical or technical expertise with specific experience in anti-doping matters.”

Team India start their international commitments in September with the Sri Lanka tour and the domestic season begins in October. It is learnt that BCCI could also go for pre-departure tests ahead of international events, like the PCB does. Samples are likely to be sent to the WADA-accredited laboratory that came into being in the wake of the 2010 Delhi Commonwealth Games. This reduces the cost of testing of samples as WADA accredidated labs abroad.

... contd.