Andre Russell Appeals Against One-Year Ban

West Indies star Andre Russell has filed an appeal against his one-year ban for doping whereabouts rule violation.

The 28-year-old, who plies his trade for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the Indian Premier League (IPL), has been banned for a year from the game after an anti-doping panel found him guilty of violating the whereabouts clause. The ban was imposed on January 31, 2017 and will last until January 30, 2018.

In March last year, the fast-bowling all-rounder was accused by the Jamaica Anti-doping Commission (JADCO) of violating the whereabouts clause. The JADCO claimed the player failed to file his whereabouts on three separate occasions within a 12-month period in 2015. Under the World Anti-Doping Agency rules, that amounts to a failed dope test.

In his defence, the explosive all-rounder had said he did not know how to file the whereabouts before insisting he had given the responsibility to his agent and travel agents to take care of the whereabouts since he was busy playing cricket. However, the JADCO blasted him for his negligence before he was banned from cricket.

But the player, who missed the Pakistan Super League (PSL) and is all set to miss the Indian Premier League, is in no mood to sit back and serve the one-year ban as he has appealed to have his ban dismissed.

According to reports in Reuters, the news outlet has obtained a copy of Russell’s appeal document that was submitted to the Jamaican Anti-Doping Appeals Tribunal on March 20. It calls for the decision rendered by the independent anti-doping disciplinary panel be set aside.

Earlier, the JADCO had filed an appeal to have Russell’s suspension doubled from one year to two.