Yusuf Pathan Banned for 5 Months for Doping

The BCCI suspended former India all-rounder Yusuf Pathan for five months. The suspension was on the grounds of a doping violation. The BCCI instructed the Baroda Cricket Association to exclude him from the recently concluded Ranji Trophy. They released a statement on Tuesday explaining that the 35-year-old had “inadvertently ingested a prohibited substance, which can be commonly found in cough syrups.”

The BCCI back-dated the suspension from 15 August 2017, In other words, it will end on 14 January 2018. A BCCI release stated; “Pathan had provided a urine sample as part of the BCCI’s anti-doping testing program during a domestic T20 competition on 16 March 2017 in New Delhi. His sample was subsequently tested and found to contain Terbutaline. Terbutaline, a specified substance, is prohibited both In & Out of Competition in the WADA Prohibited List of Substances.”

“On 27 October 2017, Pathan was charged with the commission of an Anti-Doping Rule Violation (ADRV) under the BCCI Anti-Doping Rules (ADR) Article 2.1 and provisionally suspended pending determination of the charge. Mr Pathan responded to the charge by admitting the ADRV and asserting that it was caused by his ingestion of a medication containing Terbutaline that had been mistakenly given to him instead of the medication prescribed for him, which did not contain any prohibited substance.”

The board was “satisfied” with Pathan’s explanation that he had inadvertently taken the banned substance Terbutaline. This was while he was undergoing treatment for an Upper Respiratory Tract Infection (URTI) and not as a performance-enhancing drug. The BCCI proceeded to sentence him to a five month suspension.

The BCCI release further stated; “Under BCCI ADR Article 10.10.3, Pathan is entitled to the full credit against that period of ineligibility for the provisional suspension that he has been serving since 28 October 2017. In addition, there is discretion under BCCI ADR Article 10.10.2 to back-date the start date of the period of ineligibility still further on account of Mr Pathan’s prompt admission of his ADRV upon being confronted with it by the BCCI, and under BCCI ADR Article 10.10.1 on account of the delays in the results management in this case that are not attributable to Mr Pathan. In all of the circumstances, the five-month period of ineligibility will be deemed to have started to run on 15 August 2017 and end at midnight on 14 January 2018.”