England will abandon handshakes on Sri Lanka tour due to coronavirus outbreak

Following medical advice, Root has stated that England's players will forgo handshakes in favour of fist bumps in an attempt to reduce the chance of spreading germs and bacteria

England’s Test captain Joe Root has revealed the precautions players will take on their tour of Sri Lanka to guard against the threat of coronavirus.

Following medical advice, Root has stated that England’s players will forgo handshakes in favour of fist bumps in an attempt to reduce the chance of “spreading germs and bacteria”.

"After the illnesses that swept through the squad in South Africa, we are well aware of the importance of keeping contact to a minimum," said Root.

"We've been given some really sound and sensible advice from our medical team to help prevent spreading germs and bacteria.

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"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 antibacterial wipes and gels we've been given in our immunity packs."

Chris Silverwood’s team, who flew to Sri Lanka on Monday, will contest a two-Test series beginning at Galle on March 19, with the first of two warm-up fixtures starting on March 7 at Katunayake.

While Sri Lanka confirmed its one and only case of coronavirus in January, as it stands the tour is set to be unaffected according to the captain.

"There is no suggestion that the tour will be affected,” he said. “But, of course, it is an evolving situation so we are in regular contact with the authorities and will proceed as advised.”