Coronavirus fears played on minds of England players, says Joe Root

The two-match Test series was postponed on Friday, while the team were going through the motions of a warm-up game in Colombo, following talks between both boards.

Root revealed that the fast-moving nature of the pandemic had unsettled his squad, causing concerns over friends and relations back in the United Kingdom.

Speaking ahead of England’s flight home Root said: “There was an element of relief. The right decision has been made.

“You could see looking at the players that their minds were elsewhere thinking about people back home. Now that we can go and look after families and be with loved ones that’s put a lot of guys at ease. Naturally there was a lot of talk in the dressing room and it got to a stage where it overshadowed the cricket. Looking at how quickly things have happened at home, you’re thinking about family and friends who might be a bit more vulnerable and that’s hard when you’re a long way away.

“It was clear it was getting in the way of performance and affecting the mental well-being of the guys.”

Sri Lanka has only recorded three cases of Covid-19 but there were fears that travelling England fans, thought to number around 3,000, could inadvertently bring the virus with them.

Should any England player or staff member have tested positive they would immediately have been removed from the carefully controlled team environment and turned over to the Sri Lankan government’s procedures.

It is understood England’s management team had been briefed on the quarantine arrangements and were concerned by them.

“There were a number of different scenarios we could have found ourselves in that were pretty scary to be honest,” said Root.