World doping body to carry out tests at Champions Trophy

The World Anti Doping Agency (WADA) will carry out random drugs tests on two players from each of the ten participating teams during the Champions Trophy, to be held in India from October 7.

Professor Ratnakar Shetty, the newly appointed administrative head of the BCCI and tournament director, told a press conference, "This is the first time dope tests have been introduced by the ICC in Champions Trophy. It had been done on a trial basis during the last World Cup in South Africa but officially this is being done for the first time at the top level."

Shetty added, "The testing would be at random decided by WADA personnel. Two players in each team can be tested and there's no specification on the number of matches during the tournament during which the tests would be conducted.

"Therapautic drugs which some of the players might be taking should be informed to the ICC in advance. As far as the Indian team is concerned, all the players have been informed adequately on the issue."

Test samples are expected to be sent to the nearest WADA-accredited lab in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The ICC, said Shetty, has also introduced an insurance scheme for all the teams by which each player is insured to the tune of US$ 300,000.