No target doping, asserts ICC; hopes for a 'clean' World Cup

Montego Bay, Mar 9 (UNI) The ICC today asserted that random doping tests should not be confused with Target doping, saying ''the dope tests will continue because we are determined to see that this World Cup is going to be clean.'' The ICC's general manager for cricket operations, Dave Richardson said last evening that picking players for drug tests beyond the random sampling outlined ahead of this event, will continue.

''Tests have been made, yes..'' he told mediapersons, adding ''other than the declared random tests, we are continuing with the practice of picking out players who are under suspicion but I don't think that is targeting.'' He refused to name any of the cricketers. ''I cannot and will not do that. But I can tell you that these tests have been carried out even in the course of warm-up matches.'' ''It is not that ICC is after England or Australian players only.

We want to see that the game is clean and for that we will continue random doping and players can be of any team and not from a particular team,'' he explained.

Pakistan's spearheads Shoiab Akhtar and Mohammad Asif were pointedly mentioned by ICC chief executive officer Malcolm Speed ahead of the Pakistan Cricket Board's announcement of its 15-member squad late last month with the added warning that players found breaching the strict doping rules would not be eligible for substitution.

Each guilty cricketer would therefore effectively reduce the strength of his squad at this World Cup.

The two Pakistani bowlers had tested positive last year for Nandrolone in internal dope tests conducted just before the Champions Trophy got underway and were flown back under secrecy from Jaipur, and handed bans by the PCB which were later overturned.

The ICC is determined not to be caught napping any longer.

''In a few years, we will level other sports in line with World Anti-Doping Agency guidelines,'' Richardson said.

''Fortunately here in the West Indies, and particularly Jamaica, there are world class testing facilities available so the watch this time round is close and action immediate. We will do whatever is necessary to root out this problem,'' he added.

''We hope this World Cup will be clean,'' he said.

UNI