BCCI Includes Hardik Pandya, Jasprit Bumrah, and Others in Anti-Doping Test Pool
The National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) has today revealed its updated Registered Testing Pool (RTP) for the year 2025, which includes some of India’s most promising cricketing talents. Big names like Jasprit Bumrah, Hardik Pandya, Rishabh Pant, Suryakumar Yadav, and Shubman Gill are now part of this program which is dedicated to the upkeep of the spirit of fair play in sports.
As part of this initiative, NADA’s Dope Control Officers (DCOs) will collect samples during the white ball series between India and England. The program of regular testing to ensure athletes comply with anti-doping rules is part of a broader effort to promote fairness and transparency in competitive sports. NADA has always been very particular in creating a clean and ethical sporting environment and has made it clear through selecting prominent cricketers.
The BCCI has been informed that immediate anti-doping measures will come into effect, with Dope Control Officers (DCOs) conducting tests at various venues during the upcoming series. India’s campaign in the five-match T20I series against England at Kolkata begins on Wednesday, January 22. These measures are designed to maintain the integrity and openness of cricket and to make sure that every player abides by the anti-doping rules.
According to the Times of India, the Registered Testing Pool (RTP) comprises a total of 14 male and female cricketers and others from other sports.
| Category | Players Included in RTP |
|---|---|
| Male Cricketers | Hardik Pandya, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Arshdeep Singh, Sanju Samson, Tilak Verma |
| Female Cricketers | Shafali Verma, Deepti Sharma, Renuka Singh Thakur |
Prithvi Shaw and Others Face Doping Suspensions
In 2019, the National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) introduced Registered Testing Pool (RTP) for cricketers and on the list were Ravindra Jadeja, Cheteshwar Pujara, KL Rahul, Smriti Mandhana and Deepti Sharma to name a few. These athletes were mandated to give their ‘whereabouts’ for testing purposes. But in 2020 they were issued a warning for being late in furnishing their details because of a technical problem. BCCI explained this lapse as a system glitch worsened by the problems of the COVID-19 lockdown.
Whereabouts are the specific details that athletes must give for anti-doping purposes, including home address, e-mail, telephone number, and details of overnight stays, along with a 60-minute window each day when they will be available for testing. In 2020, Prithvi Shaw was suspended after testing positive for the banned substance Terbutaline 2020 although he claimed to have ingested it unintentionally. Other cricketers like Yusuf Pathan, Pradeep Sangwan, and Anshula Rao have also been suspended by the BCCI for failing doping tests.
“Athletes who are part of the RTP are required to provide whereabouts information which will then be utilized by NADA to locate them for an effective out-of-competition sample collection process,” the report said.