Hampshire cancel pre-season trip and fly bowlers home from Spain camp

The squad’s bowlers and some coaching staff flew out on Wednesday, while the rest of the group were due to arrive at La Manga on Friday

• Coronavirus and cricket: Tours and competitions postponed, cancelled and affected by Covid-19

Hampshire have become the fourth and final county to bring an end to their pre-season trip to Spain.

They follow Gloucestershire, Glamorgan and Warwickshire in announcing that they are to cut short their camp at the La Manga resort as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak.

The squad’s bowlers and some coaching staff flew out on Wednesday, while the rest of the group were due to arrive on Friday.

That will not now happen, however; instead, the bowlers will return home and the club will continue their preseason preparations in the UK.

A club statement explained: “The health and wellbeing of our players and staff is our primary concern and after monitoring the situation related to COVID-19 closely, we have taken the decision to return from La Manga as a precautionary measure.

“Following significant uncertainty around travel overseas and the further disruption this could cause, we will now continue our pre-season preparations at the Ageas Bowl, giving us the best opportunity to be prepared for the coming season.”