Board support players over Wada agreement

The Indian cricket board yesterday rejected the World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada) agreement after complaints from their players about a section in the clause that they believe violates their privacy and risks their personal safety. The players did not like the section stating that they are required to give their whereabouts three months in advance to allow out-of-competition testing. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) secretary, N Srinivasan, said the players approved of the majority of the agreement and their only concern was with the "whereabouts" clause.

"They don't have a problem with being tested or the testing system but they cannot be followed when not playing cricket," Srinivasan said. "The issue is of out of competition testing. "Since it's a matter of privacy and also about security, the BCCI agrees with the players' view." "It invades the players' privacy which is their constitutional right and cannot be taken away," BCCI president Shashank Manohar added after a board meeting in Mumbai yesterday.

The International Cricket Council (ICC), which hoped all affiliated boards would have had their players sign the Wada form by August 1, were represented at the meeting by lawyer Iain Higgins. The ICC have joined in with signing the Wada code, making it mandatory for all associates to adhere to the anti-doping conditions of agreement. According to Wada rules, any player who misses three doping tests in 18 months faces bans of up to two years. The ICC later issued a statement, saying: "The next step is for this matter to be considered further by the ICC board to find a way forward."

Wada are expected to meet with representatives from all sports bodies in London this year. [e-mail]