Barker to return in July after anti-doping violation

Hampshire all-rounder Keith Barker has been fixed a 12-month prohibition aft testing affirmative for a prohibited substance.

The 38-year-old has not played since a affirmative out-of-competition trial was returned successful July 2024 which contained an adverse analytical uncovering for nan supplier indapamide, which is utilized to dainty hypertension.

Hampshire said that nan usurpation appeared because of an "administrative correction betwixt aesculapian professionals and Barker".

UK Anti-Doping (UKAD) confirmed that, pursuing a proceeding connected 5 March this year, Barker was handed a backdated 12-month suspension. He will beryllium eligible to return to cricket from 4 July.

In a connection Hampshire said: "The controlled substance, which was a like-for-like replacement to Barker's erstwhile long-standing medication, was not declared to UK Anti-Doping astatine nan clip of usage and a petition for a retrospective therapeutic usage exemption was rejected.

"The reappraisal sheet accepted that Barker had nary volition of breaching anti-doping rules and was not seeking immoderate capacity advantage."

The region added that they had been moving pinch nan Professional Cricketers' Association (PCA) to support Barker and had been incapable to make immoderate nationalist remark astir his absence from nan team.

Giles White, Hampshire's head of cricket, said: "This is simply a regrettable incident which is nan consequence of a genuine mistake.

"Keith is an exceptional master and everyone astatine nan nine is focused connected supporting him to return to first-team action from July."

Barker said: "Over nan past 9 months I person been portion of a very tense, gruelling process starring to nan results of my hearing.

"Having been forced to measurement distant from my profession and nan athletics I person loved since I was a young kid owed to a genuine administrative correction has been mentally taxing and near maine fearing for nan nonaccomplishment of my profession that is very beloved to me.

"I'd for illustration to convey nan support of nan PCA, each nan professionals progressive successful moving connected my case, Hampshire Cricket and family and friends for helping maine get done this difficult time.

"I'm looking guardant to getting backmost to playing nan crippled that I love, my dream is for immoderate young professionals to look astatine my lawsuit pinch a renewed consciousness of vigilance astir medicine and anti-doping procedures successful master sport."

Barker, a erstwhile England younker footballer, antecedently played for Warwickshire and has taken 533 first-class wickets during his career, arsenic good arsenic scoring almost 5,500 first-class runs, including six centuries.