Brendon McCullum Opens Up on Failed Drug Test for Gujarat Lions in 2016

Former New Zealand captain, Brendon McCullum has finally given his views on a positive drug test which he faced during his stint with the Gujarat Lions in the Indian Premier League in 2016.

Due to heavy pollution in the capital city of India, New Delhi, McCullum had to take medication for his asthma. Hence, Baz had to consume more than the regular dose. As a result, he tested positive and was said to have more than the required amount of salbutamol which is a banned substance on WADA’s List.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) approached McCullum with the same sort of an attitude. It resulted in medical experts from Sweden to issue a retroactive Therapeutic Use Exemption (TUE).

“There was a bit of a process to go through to make sure they had all the information and ticked off the areas they wanted to see, but we went through it all and [the BCCI] was actually pretty good to work with, in the end,” McCullum was quoted as saying by stuff.co.nz on Friday.

McCullum smashed a brilliant 60 off 36 deliveries against Delhi and was one of the chief architects behind the victory. However, after the match, drug tests showed that McCullum exceeded the limit as per World Anti Doping Agency (WADA).

It states anything used which is not consistent with therapeutic use will be a violation of the rules.

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McCullum says he doesn’t consider it as a failed drug test,

“I certainly don’t see it as a failed drug test. It was just a case of we just need to seek clarification and apply for this. I have no ill-feeling about [the process], and I also have no guilt or remorse about it because I needed a puff of my inhaler at that time,” McCullum said.

The issue came to a mutual settlement in January 2017. Now after opening up after a long time, McCullum has cleared many things.

“I’ve heard this sort of rumbling around in the background for a while, and I actually said to my wife, ‘I don’t know why we don’t just deal with this now, I’ve got nothing to hide and it is better off just talking about stuff rather than having other people talking about it’. Otherwise, it just grows and festers.

“As far as I am concerned it was just a matter of making sure we got everything signed off properly, rather than it being a failed drug test.”

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