LONDON: Former England captain Michael Vaughan hopes the increased testing for recreational drugs promised by cricket chiefs following the death of Surrey batsman Tom Maynard will “frighten” anyone still using them.
A coroner’s inquest in central London was told on Monday that Maynard was nearly four times above the legal alcohol limit for driving and had taken cocaine and ecstasy before he was electrocuted and hit by a train in June last year.
The coroner recorded a verdict of accidental death on the promising cricketer, whose father was former England batsman Matthew Maynard. The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) responded by announcing increased testing for recreational, as well as performance-enhancing, drugs.
Vaughan, writing in yesterday’s Daily Telegraph, said: “There will be players in cricket who have taken recreational drugs and are still doing it, but I hope Tom Maynard’s tragic story will make them stop. There are around 400 professional cricketers in England and it would be naive to think Tom’s is an isolated case. There are bound to be more who have taken drugs in the past or are still doing it now.”
The former England captain added: “The England and Wales Cricket Board is going to introduce more testing for recreational drugs and that will frighten a few into cleaning up their acts.”
Surrey have recruited South Africa captain Graeme Smith and former Australia skipper Ricky Ponting as overseas players for the upcoming English season.
Vaughan said: “....next summer they will have Graeme Smith and Ricky Ponting. Two men who are exactly the right kind of role models for young kids making their way in cricket.” AFP
