LAHORE-As many as 20 players and 12 officials of the Pakistan men’s cricket team, which is in England, have tested negative for COVID-19.
Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) spokesman here on Tuesday said that the tests of these 31-squad members were taken at Worcestershire upon their arrival in England under the supervision of the ECB medical panel of England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB). Spinner Zafar Gohar and physiotherapist Cliffe Deacon joined the team late and also were also tested for COVID-19 test, and later in the evening, they were tested negative. Both are allowed to join the training with the national team, he added.
The PCB spokesman further said that six players including Fakhar Zaman, Mohammad Hasnain, Mohammad Hafeez, Mohammad Rizwan, Shadab Khan and Wahab Riaz, who have tested negative for Covid-19 for the second time in three days and, as such, are now eligible to join the Pakistan cricket team in Worcestershire. The players were retested on Monday, June 29, following a first negative test on June 26. The PCB will now start making their travel arrangements and the departure details will be shared in due course, he added.
But the other four of the 10 players, including Imran Khan, Kashif Bhatti, Haider Ali and Haris Rauf, who originally tested positive for the virus last week, tested positive for a second time. They will have to stay in Pakistan for now after failing further tests. They will not be allowed to travel to England until they have recorded two consecutive negative tests.
Pakistan will play three Tests and three Twenty20 internationals against England starting in August, with the exact dates still to be confirmed. The Pakistan squad arrived in England late Sunday and has started a 14-day mandatory quarantine period before intra-squad practice games.
A 30-strong England squad and support staff are currently in a bio-secure training camp at the Ageas Bowl ahead of next week’s opening Test against the West Indies. This first fixture in the three-match series will mark the return of major international cricket from lockdown. The ECB added that England’s latest round of tests, for their training group and management conducted on Monday had also yielded a complete set of negative results. England players and staff have now had three COVID-19 tests.
PAKISTAN TEAM
PRACTICES IN NETS
After clearing the COVID-19 tests in England, Pakistan cricket team players enthusiastically took part in the training session following all the necessary SOPs. All were in pleasant mood and it was a very session for all of them as well as for the coaching staff, who all were eager to give out their best in the nets as they got a chance of training in the grounds after a long gap due to COVID-19 pandemic.