Former Australia captain Tim Paine has slammed the lack of transparency surrounding Kagiso Rabada’s failed drug test, calling for full disclosure from the authorities handling the matter.
In a shocking revelation over the weekend, Rabada disclosed that he is serving a provisional suspension after testing positive for a banned recreational drug. The South African pacer had left the IPL last month after playing two games for Gujarat Titans, citing personal reasons.
“It stinks. I don’t like this use around personal issues, and it being used to hide stuff that isn’t a personal issue,” Paine told ‘SEN Radio’ on Monday.
“If you have a professional sportsman that’s tested for recreational drugs during a tournament in which he is playing, that doesn’t fall under personal issues for me.
“That falls under you have broken your contract. That is not a personal issue, that is something that is happening in your personal life,” he added.
The positive test was recorded during the SAT20 league in January. “Taking drugs - recreational or performance enhancing - is not a personal issue that can just be hidden for a month. A guy can be taken out of the IPL, moved back to South Africa and we just let it slide under the rug. Then we will bring him back once he’s already served his ban,” Paine said.
According to World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) code, the quantum of punishment for usage of recreational drug could be anything between three months to four years.
While there is no clarity on when the pacer would return to action, it’s been speculated that he may be eligible to represent South Africa at the World Test Championship (WTC) final against Australia in June.
Rabada is an important member of the Proteas set-up having played 241 international games for South Africa across formats including 70 Tests.
“Not only will play against Australia in the World Test Championship but he’s available to be playing now in the IPL. No one knew about what he’s taken, what he was given or who the organising body was that oversaw it.
“If he is going to take drugs and be caught doing it I think people deserve to know what he’s taken, how long he is being rubbed out for and who sanctioned it. People need to be held to account for stuff like that,” Paine added.
Substances such as cocaine, heroin, MDMA and cannabis fall in the category of ‘Substances of Abuse’. WADA recognizes they can be taken out-of-competition for reasons unrelated to sports performance.
The use of such drugs carry a maximum of four-year ban but if a sportsperson can prove that the use occurred out-of-competition and is not related to performance enhancement, the ban could be reduced to three months with no need to further analyze the degree of fault.
The athlete’s ban can be reduced to two months if he/she is willing to undertake a treatment program that is approved by South African Anti-Doping body.
If the drug is taken in-competition but the athlete can prove the use was unrelated to performance, a two-year ban will be handed out as the infringement will be considered non-intentional.
