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Prithvi Shaw suspended from cricket after doping violation

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Prithvi Shaw, one of India’s most promising cricket stars, has been banned from the sport until the middle of November after testing positive for a prohibited substance.

The 19-year-old, who made became the youngest Indian to make a century on debut after hitting 134 against the West Indies in October 2018, was found to have “inadvertently ingested a prohibited substance, which can commonly be found in cough syrups.”

The batsman has been banned for eight months by India’s Board of Control for Cricket (BCCI) — backdated to March 16. He will be free to resume playing from November 15, 2019.

Shaw is the fourth youngest player in the history of cricket to hit a debut century, and also became the second youngest Indian player to score a Test match century after the legendary Sachin Tendulkar.

He provided a urine sample as part of the BCCI’s anti-doping program on February 22 and tested positive for Terbutaline while playing in a tournament in Indore.

After accepting the charge, Shaw posted a statement on Twitter, accepting his fate “with all sincerity.”

“I was coming back off a foot injury which I suffered during the India tour of Australia and I was returning to active cricket in the tournament,” Shaw said.

“However, out of my eagerness to play, I didn’t follow the protocol of being careful in consuming a basic over the counter cough syrup.

“I accept my fate with all sincerity. While I am still nursing an injuring which I suffered in my last tournament, this news has really shaken me. “

As part of the punishment, Shaw is prohibited from training with his team and is not allowed to use training facilities of any other club until after midnight on September 15.

In a statement, the BCCI added: “The BCCI has a zero-tolerance approach towards doping in cricket. All cricketers are personally responsible for ensuring that anything they eat, drink or put in their body does not give rise to an anti-doping rule violation (ADRV) under the BCCI anti-doping code.”