Sri Lanka's Binura Fernando, Chamika Karunaratne test Covid-19-positive ahead of West Indies tour

This is the first time players attached to Sri Lanka squads have tested positive for Covid-19

Seam bowler Binura Fernando and seam-bowling allrounder Chamika Karunaratne have tested positive for Covid-19 after having begun training as part of a 22-member limited-overs squad ahead of next month’s tour of the West Indies.

Both players have since been removed from the training group and asked to quarantine. It is understood that players were training in three separate groups, so although several other members of the squad have been told to isolate, the majority of the squad is unaffected.

According to an SLC release, the squad began training on January 18, and underwent a PCR Test on January 20, the results of which showed Fernando and Karunaratne to be positive for the virus. The players will have another PCR Test on January 26.

This is the first time players attached to Sri Lanka squads have tested positive for Covid-19. In 2020, SLC had run residential training camps through the middle of the year, and had also staged the Lanka Premier League without any major Covid scares (two players had tested positive on arrival, but were quarantined immediately).

These two players testing positive for Covid-19 does not have any effect on the biosecure bubble for the ongoing Test series involving England.