By David Awopetu
Seven more Pakistan cricketers have tested positive for coronavirus, taking the total to 10.
However, players who have tested negative will depart for the tour of England on 28 June.
Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chief executive Wasim Khan said, “The tour to England is on track and the side will depart as planned.”
Pakistan is scheduled to meet England in three Tests and three Twenty20s, beginning in August.
Speaking when only three cases were known, England’s Director of cricket, Ashley Giles, said, “We’re hopeful that Pakistan will be arriving fairly soon.
“We’re far enough away from the Test series to not worry about that too much at the moment.”
Trio of Haider Ail, Haris Rauf and Shadab Khan showed no symptoms before testing positive on Sunday.
They have now been joined by Fakhar Zaman, Imran Khan, Kashif Bhatti, Mohammad Hafeez, Mohammad Hasnain, Mohammad Rizwan and Wahab Riaz, along with team masseur Malang Ali, after further tests were carried out on Monday.
All positive tested individuals have been told to observe strict quarantine at their homes.
The players and management staff who have tested negative will still meet up on Wednesday, undergo further testing on Thursday, and depart for the UK as planned. They will be tested again within 24 hours of their arrival.
Players who have tested positive will have to return two negative tests before they are allowed to travel.
Khan added, “The recent positive tests of some of the fittest athletes, who had not shown any symptoms, clearly reflect the danger this virus possesses.”
According to Johns Hopkins University, as of Tuesday morning, there had been 185,034 confirmed cases of coronavirus in Pakistan, resulting in 3,695 deaths.
England’s matches this summer, beginning with three Tests against West Indies, are set to be played behind closed doors in bio-secure environments at Old Trafford and Southampton.
England’s 30-man training group will arrive in Southampton on Tuesday to prepare for the series with West Indies, which starts on 8 July.
