India’s national anti-doping body NADA is currently in action mode. During IPL 2026, Delhi Capitals captain Akshar Patel and Sunrisers Hyderabad opening batsman Abhishek Sharma have been included in the registered testing pool. All players who are included in the registered testing pool will have to provide their location to NADA and be available for testing on the day of testing. But what is this dope test and what punishment can a cricketer face if he fails in it?
What is doping test?
Most of the athletes in the sports world have to undergo ‘doping test’. The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) appears to be more active especially in big events like the Olympics and Commonwealth Games. Doping test is conducted so that it can be found out whether any athlete has consumed banned drugs.
The athlete’s urine sample, blood sample, saliva or sweat sample can also be taken for testing. In this, it is ascertained whether any athlete has consumed steroids, banned pain killer medicines, testosterone increasing or energy enhancing drugs. The most interesting aspect of this test is that NADA can send a notice for dope test to the athlete at any time without any notice.
What is the punishment for failure?
According to NADA rules, if an athlete fails in a dope test, he can be banned for 2-4 years. At the same time, if the athlete repeatedly fails the dope test, he can also be sentenced to a lifetime ban. It is not very long ago that in the year 2025, Tamil Nadu sprinter Dhanalakshmi Shekhar was banned for 8 years.
Indian cricketer Prithvi Shaw also failed in dope test once. It was February 2019, when Prithvi Shaw was caught consuming a banned drug during the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. It was later revealed that Shaw had accidentally consumed a banned drug, yet he had to face an 8-month ban.
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