da betobet： Even as the Indian cricket team returned from a not entirelysuccessful tour of Zimbabwe, they would have felt gratified at thefact that the Board of Control for Cricket in India officials havebeen quick to rise to the players’ defence in the
Partab Ramchand09-Jul-2001Even as the Indian cricket team returned from a not entirelysuccessful tour of Zimbabwe, they would have felt gratified at thefact that the Board of Control for Cricket in India officials havebeen quick to rise to the players’ defence in the controversial matterof drugs charges.Immediately after the allegations were made in Outlook magazine, BCCIsecretary JY Lele dismissed the charges as `bakwas’ (nonsense). And onSunday, he was joined by BCCI president AC Muthiah who also discountedreports that some Indian cricketers had used performance enhancingsteroids. “I don’t think our players are involved in any such drugissue,” he told a press conference in Chennai after the annual generalmeeting of the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association.Lele had earlier said that the BCCI would follow the InternationalCricket Council guidelines on controlling drug abuse in the game. “Wealready have the code of conduct in which taking such substances isprohibited. And if ICC announces the guidelines and list of banneddrugs, we will follow suit,” Lele said.On Sunday, Muthiah said much the same thing. According to him, the ICCwas “working out certain methods to avoid drug abuse if it isprevalent amongst cricketers.” He said that the drug issue wasdiscussed at length during an ICC meeting last month and added theBCCI was awaiting the decisions and would follow the ICC system assoon as it was in place. Asked whether the BCCI proposed to takerandom samples of Indian team members for dope testing, Muthiah saidthere was no lab facilities available in the country for such tests.Even for horses, samples were being sent abroad, he said.Muthiah did not say anything about taking legal action againstOutlook. But Lele has already been quoted as saying that BCCI wascontemplating going to court. “We will take up the matter at theworking committee meeting of the BCCI in August. Only then we willdecide what course of action should be taken against ‘Outlook’ formaking such wild allegations. If necessary, we would even takerecourse to legal action,” he said.The outspoken Lele, while dismissing the charges, said “It is timesomeone goes to court against publishing such nonsense," anddescribed the article as “reckless reportage.” The BCCI secretary infact had a talk with the team members while they were in Zimbabwe.”The boys were very upset but I had a talk with the Indian teammanagement and asked them not to worry about such baseless reports andcarry on the good work," said Lele.The team management – manager Chetan Chauhan and physio Andrew Leipus- were the first to deny the charges and defend the players stoutly.And former coach Anshuman Gaekwad, who reportedly made most of theallegations, has already vehemently denied the charges. Now withMuthiah and Lele too standing solidly behind the cricketers, theplayers should be satisfied with the response as they prepare for atough tour of Sri Lanka.