England's tour of Sri Lanka postponed due to COVID-19

The two sides were slated to play a two-match Test series from March 19.

Image Credits: Twitter/@englandcricket

Amid coronavirus outbreak across the world, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has decided to postpone their upcoming two-match Test series against Sri Lanka, which was due to take place from March 19 at Galle International Stadium. 

Announcing the news, the ECB said that they have come upon the decision following a discussion with their Sri Lankan counterpart, adding that they have also called back their players to the United Kingdom.

"Due to the Covid-19 pandemic worsening globally, and after discussions with Sri Lanka Cricket, we have today made the decision to return our players to the UK and postpone the forthcoming Test series between Sri Lanka and England," the ECB said in a statement. 

Insisting that the physical and mental wellbeing of their players and support teams is paramount, the ECB thanked Sri Lanka Cricket for their outstanding support and assistance throughout this situation. 

"At this time, the physical and mental wellbeing of our players and support teams is paramount. We will now look to bring them home to their families as soon as possible. These are completely unprecedented times, and decisions like this go beyond cricket," the ECB said. 

"We would like to thank our colleagues at Sri Lanka Cricket for their outstanding support and assistance throughout this situation. We look forward to returning to Sri Lanka in the very near future to fulfill this important Test series," the board added. 

The coronavirus was recently declared a global 'pandemic' by the World Health Organization. The virus outbreak, which was first reported in December 2019 from Wuhan city of China, has so far affected 1,32,000 persons globally and claimed the lives of more than 4,600 people.