Sport

Rabada’s recreational drug use admission should be seen as a warning sign and possible cry for help

Kagiso Rabada of South Africa during day 2 of the 2nd Test between South Africa and Pakistan at World Sports Betting Newlands Cricket Ground on January 04, 2025 in Cape Town, South Africa. (Photo by Ashley Vlotman/Gallo Images)

By Craig Ray

7 May 2025

Fast-bowling superstar Kagiso Rabada needs support as he returns to play after a positive drugs test.

Last week, South Africa’s leading fast bowler, Kagiso Rabada, admitted to failing a drug test, which found a recreational drug in his system. The test, conducted by the South African Institute for Drug Free Sport (Saids), took place on 21 January during the SA20 competition.

Rabada found out about the positive test a few months later – on 1 April – while on duty for the Gujarat Titans in the Indian Premier League (IPL). He didn’t contest the finding and waived the right for a B-sample to be analysed, clearly knowing he was responsible.

That might seem like a small detail but it’s actually significant.

Recreational drug use is mostly illegal as they’re almost always obtained nefariously. You don’t go down to the pharmacy and buy over-the-counter cocaine or ecstasy.

In many cases, recreational drug use is also detrimental to the user. But in a sporting context, this category of narcotics is not performance enhancing.

A report by the University of Sydney published in 2024 is just one source that quashes the idea that cocaine, for instance, can be performance enhancing.

“Athletes may use cocaine to improve focus, endurance, or to increase confidence, which it is claimed could provide them with an unfair advantage,” the reports states.

“However, despite the perceived benefits, it is highly unlikely an athlete would use it for performance enhancement. This is because the duration of the euphoric sensation is relatively brief, maybe as short as 15 to 30 minutes, and often followed by a rapid decline in mood and energy levels.

“The cocaine would also likely affect their judgement and decision-making, an important aspect of ball sports.”

Rabada case

Rabada’s conduct has been mature in the wake of a stupid act. This is not systematic doping to gain a competitive edge. It appears to be a one-off moment of weakness/experimentation that is both believable and plausible, which the player has accepted.

Immediately Rabada took responsibility and was ready to front up to a mistake.

Rabada Kagiso Rabada was cleared to play after a one month suspension. (Photo: Ashley Vlotman / Gallo Images / Getty Images)

And this is where the line is blurred because people are quick to be moral police and demonise Rabada because he used some form of recreational drug.

The circumstances and reasons that he took a recreational drug are not really the business of the media or the public.

The fact that he was found to have taken a recreational drug, during a popular tournament and as a high-profile person, is certainly newsworthy and in the public interest. Hence the reporting on the matter.

And because Rabada violated the World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada) regulations, it automatically triggered a cascade of events and bureaucratic procedures.

Lenient sentence?

Let’s fast forward slightly. Rabada has only been slapped with an effective one-month ban for this violation, which on the face of it seems lenient.

There have been cases where sportspeople have received two-year suspensions after being found guilty of recreational drug use. So why not in this case?

The reason is straightforward – a change in policy.

Wada has softened its stance on recreational drug bans because they are not performance enhancing. And while this type of action does violate the guiding principle of “the spirit of sport”, the “crime” doesn’t really warrant a potentially career-ending ban.

In 2021, Wada altered its own Code when it came to the “spirit of sport”, essentially admitting that they could not be the moral guardians of people’s lifestyles.

The key change in the 2021 Wada Code was the introduction of a new category called “substances of abuse”. This category specifically includes substances that are frequently abused in society outside of the context of sport.

Kagiso Rabada bowls against Pakistan at Newlands on 4 January 2025. (Photo: Ashley Vlotman / Gallo Images)

That change in policy and philosophy meant that while recreational drugs remained on the banned list, they would be tried without the added burden of the “spirit of sport” clause.

Wada’s central objective is to stop people cheating in sport due to using performance-enhancing drugs. It’s almost impossible to make a case for recreational drugs doubling up as substances that improve sporting prowess.

Under the previous version of the Code, testing positive for these substances could result in a ban of up to two or even four years, depending on the specific substance and circumstances.

However, the updated Code stated that if an athlete tests positive for a “substance of abuse” during an in-competition test but can establish that the ingestion or use occurred out-of-competition and was unrelated to sport performance, then the period of ineligibility would be a standard three months.

Furthermore, this three-month period could be reduced to just one month if the athlete satisfactorily completed a substance abuse treatment programme approved by the relevant anti-doping organisation.

It’s important to note that even under the amended Code, if the recreational drug was taken “in-competition” a two-year ban could still apply.

Wheels in motion

So when Rabada heard of the outcome of his test conducted by Saids, a legal process kicked in.

And because South African players are well represented by the South African Cricketers’ Association, Rabada was able to mobilise significant legal and medical resources to prove that this was a regrettable mistake.

First, he needed to prove the drug was taken “out of competition”, which is defined as midnight, the night before a match.

That required experts in toxicology to look at the metabolites in Rabada’s sample to map out the timeline of when the drug was ingested in relation to when he was due to play again.

He was able to prove that he didn’t take the substance “in competition” thanks to markers in his sample and the analysis of medical experts.

The findings of Rabada’s team were scrutinised by the prosecution (under Saids) and were accepted as “out-of-competition”.

That is the brief version of how Rabada was suspended for three months, which was reduced to a month after he underwent counselling.

South Africa’s Kagiso Rabada during the second Test against Pakistan in Cape Town on 4 January 2025. (Photo: Ashley Vlotman / Gallo Images)

Future

Of course, this incident will raise uncomfortable questions for Rabada and his inner circle. And it will no doubt lead to some heavy sledging when South Africa meets Australia in the World Test Championship final at Lord’s next month.

It was an act of stupidity and poor judgement.

The incident has also hurt Rabada’s previously clean image and will no doubt have ramifications for his multiple off-field sponsorships, which he might lose or will have to work hard to retain.

Most concerningly though, is Rabada okay?

Is this a symptom of deeper problems – of the loneliness of being on the road and of the constant pressure to perform? It appears it was a one-off transgression, but it’s opened a door to a road filled with potholes and danger for one of South Africa’s sporting heroes.

Rabada has been handed a relatively light punishment for a potentially serious offence. That’s the good news.

The bad news is that this is also a sign of fallibility and flashing warning light that he needs support and guidance. DM

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Sport

Rabada case

Lenient sentence?

Wheels in motion

Future