Prithvi shaw faced a harsh suspension, feels Dilip Vengsarkar

The substance Shaw tested positive for, was inadvertently consumed by the youngster in the form of a cough syrup during the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 Trophy in Indore in February. And Vengsarkar has backed the prodigy, who made an impact on his debut against West Indies last year, stating that the 19-year-old is too innocent to have gauged the difference.

"I feel that the punishment handed to Shaw is a bit harsh looking at the magnitude of the offence. The BCCI could have considered a lighter sentence considering his age and background," said Vengsarkar, reported TOI.  

"It's a harsh punishment for a young man who comes from a humble background. They need to be educated on these things either at the state level, at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) or by the support staff. Players with humble backgrounds are not well-versed about the differences between banned substances and cough syrups," the former chief selector added.

Vengsarkar believes that he’s a talented youngster and eight months would mean a lot of harm to Shaw’s career. He feels that the BCCI should’ve been lenient with the punishment. 

"Instead of banning for eight months, during which time he would miss a lot of important matches, the BCCI could have suspended him for three to four months. It still would have been a deterrent and at the same time would have been a stern message to him and others as well," Vengsarkar said.

The right-handed batsman has played 2 Tests for India and has scored 237 runs at an average of 118.5 with a highest score of 134.