Kagiso Rabada returns to India, available for Gujarat Titans' next match after completing 'treatment programme'

South Africa and Gujarat Titans pacer Kagiso Rabada is back in India and could be available for selection GT's next match, against Mumbai Indians, at the Wankhede on Tuesday, reported Cricbuzz. According to the reports, Rabada arrived in India on Saturday and travelled to Mumbai with the team on Sunday. Rabada had confessed to having failed a dope test for recreational drug, and was serving a suspension. "As has been reported, I recently returned to South Africa from participating in the IPL for personal reasons. This was due to my returning an adverse analytical finding for the use of a recreational drug, I am serving a provisional suspension, and I am looking forward to returning to the game I love playing," the 29-year-old had said.

It is not clear as to what substance the pacer consumed. The South African Institute for Drug-Free Sport, which would have tested him, will issue a statement later in the day. That is likely to reveal more details and where Rabada's breach aligns with the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) code.

"Mr. Rabada tested positive for a Substance of Abuse and was subsequently notified of the allegation of his doping offence on 1 April 2025. A provisional suspension was imposed and Mr. Rabada returned immediately to South Africa from India," South African Institute for Drug-Free Sport (SAIDS) release stated.


"After Mr. Rabada satisfactorily completed two sessions of his treatment program, his provisional suspension ended. The player has effectively served a one-month period of ineligibility and may now resume participation in sport," it added.

WADA has identified Cocaine, Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA /Ecstasy), Diamorphine (Heroin) and Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) (Cannabinoids) as recreational drugs.
The abuse of such drugs can lead to a maximum of four-year ban but if a sportsperson can prove that the use occurred out-of-competition and is not related to performance enhancement, the suspension could be reduced to three months. The athlete's ban can be further brought down to two months if he/she is willing to undertake a treatment program that is approved by South African Anti-Doping body.