ENGLAND’S tour of South Africa is set to be AXED due to an outbreak of coronavirus in both teams.
The first ODI, originally scheduled for Friday, was abandoned after positive coronavirus tests from two members of staff at the tourists’ hotel.
Monday’s second match was then cancelled after an unnamed South African player returned a positive result.
England are now said to be waiting on the results of ‘two unconfirmed positive test results’ in their own squad.
The entire squad were forced to self-isolate, before the rules were relaxed to allow all but the two stars to have returned positive results to roam the hotel.
Rather than attempt to play for a third time, Sky Sports are now claiming the tour will be cancelled.
They tweeted: “TOUR TO BE CANCELLED.
“We are awaiting official confirmation but we understand the remainder of England’s tour to South Africa has been called off on medical grounds.”
England had been due to play three ODIs in South Africa – on Friday, Monday and Wednesday – before flying home on Thursday.
They had earlier played in three Twenty20 internationals, with Eoin Morgan’s side winning all three.
Should the tour go on and more stars return positive Covid-19 results, they would be forced to self-isolate for ten days, meaning they would not be allowed to join the rest of the team on the flight home.
On Sunday, ex-England star and Sky Sports pundit Nasser Hussain hinted the tour could be cancelled for that very reason.
Hussain explained: “Those two hotel staff could have been with anyone, they’re then serving the England cricket team.
“That’s the problem with being in a bubble – the bubble works if it’s completely secure.
“But the bubble makes it doubly worse because you’re all on top of each other and then when the bubble is breached, it can spread through the team.
“England players will be thinking if they have to spend two weeks here if one of them gets it, then are they going to be late home for Christmas, families, can they spread it to grandparents?
“Some of them have to go off to Sri Lanka on January 2.
“You can imagine the Whatsapp groups going on between players saying, ‘Should we just get ourselves home for the sake of one or two ODIs?’”
