BRIDGETOWN (Barbados), May 13: The International Cricket Council (ICC) will adopt the World Anti-Doping Code in July, putting it in force for next year's World Cup in the Caribbean, a senior ICC official said on Friday.

Malcolm Speed, the ICC's chief executive, said that the council's 96 members will discus the code at its next general meeting, where it will be adopted and put in place for the 2007 championship.

Speed made the comments after a series of meetings to prepare the Caribbean region to host the World Cup for the first time.

“There will be an anti-doping program in place when the World Cup comes to the West Indies next year,'' Speed said.

“'We have a recommendation which will be discussed and that recommendation is for the ICC to adopt (the) doping code.

“I expect the member countries will adopt it and that will be (the) code we use,'' he said.

Cricket has not been rocked with major doping scandals as other sports have.

The highest-profile case of a player testing positive for a banned substance came during the 2003 World Cup in South Africa, when Australian legend Shane Warne tested positive for a banned diuretic.—AP