India coach Ravi Shastri says 'cricket should be last on everyone's mind' amid coronavirus outbreak

Coronovirus pandemic has rocked the world. The outbreak of COVID-19 has brought the life to a standstill with all activities including sporting ones being cancelled or postponed. It also had its impact on cricket and India in particular with the ODI series against South Africa in March getting abandoned midway while the IPL, which was scheduled to start on 29 March, has so far been pushed back to 15 April.

The nation is also under a 21-day lockdown period as the administration attempts to arrest the spread of the coronavirus. The lockdown and suspension of cricketing activities has given the Indian cricket team an unexpected break amidst the frenzy of the sporting calendar and head coach Ravi Shastri, who saw his team being swept in the Test and ODI series in New Zealand, has welcomed the hiatus while speaking to Rob Key, Nasser Hussain and Michael Atherton on Sky Cricket Podcast.

"I could see from the New Zealand series that the cracks were coming with mental fatigue and fitness," said Shastri. "The amount of cricket we have played over the last 10 months was beginning to take its toll. Guys like me and some of the support staff left India on May 23 for the World Cup and have been home for just 10-11 days."

Shastri also said that players have a lot of responsibility towards spreading awareness about coronoavirus and "cricket should be last on everyone's mind now."

"I think the most important thing is safety and not ensuring just your safety but ensuring safety others as well, by creating a kind of awareness that tells people there is something serious around. Virat has done it, a lot of other players have done it by posting certain messages on social media," said Shastri.

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