Sri Lanka vs England 2020 | England players to avoid shaking hands with Sri Lanka players due to Coronavirus threat

With the threat of the deadly Coronavirus looming large, England Test captain Joe Root revealed that the entire squad will refrain from shaking hands with their Sri Lankan counterparts to prevent spreading the virus.

England had a disastrous tour of New Zealand recently as more than half of their squad were struck down by food poisoning and other bacterial problems. Root revealed that, as a result, their medical team has advised them to keep contact to a minimum.

“After the illnesses that swept through the squad in South Africa, we are well aware of the importance of keeping contact to a minimum and we've been given some really sound and sensible advice from our medical team to help prevent spreading germs and bacteria.”

Instead of the traditional handshakes post the match, Root said that they will fist-bump the opposing players with respect and humility and will also wipe down surfaces with anti-bacterial wipes to stay clean and maintain a level of sanitation.

“We are not shaking hands with each other, using instead the well-established fist bump, and we are washing hands regularly and wiping down surfaces using the anti-bacterial wipes and gels we've been given in our immunity packs."

When asked about the tour being affected due to the spread of the deadly virus, Root revealed that there are no last-minute plans to back out.

“There is no suggestion that the tour will be affected, but of course it is an evolving situation so we are in regular contact with the authorities and will proceed as advised, but at this stage we fully expect the tour to continue as planned.”