The England cricket team seems to have decided not to play football to warm-up before a training session after they lost the opener, Rory Burns, to it for the remainder of the ongoing four-match Test series against South Africa. Burns, who was England’s top run-getter in the first Test, injured his left ankle while playing a football match during the warm-up prior to the Cape Town Test and scans revealed that he sustained ligament damage.

In the aftermath of the Burns’ injury, Ashley Giles, England Cricket director and head coach Chris Silverwood have reached a conclusion to not allow football as a warm-up activity in training sessions, as per the reports of ESPNcricinfo.

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Giles has always expressed his disapproval for his team playing football and had said that when he took the job that he was unhappy to see football being played as part of England’s warm-up. However, he was persuaded by senior players who felt that it was an important part of the bonding process of the squad and therefore, he agreed to review it once the World Cup had finished where England emerged victoriously.

The former England left-arm spinner had banned football from Warwickshire when he was director of cricket there.

The misfortune for the left-handed opener — who scored 84 runs in the Centurion Test which England lost by 107 runs — comes after right-arm pacer Jofra Archer pulled out of bowling practice on Thursday.

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England, 0-1 down in the Test series, is already plagued with illness to many of its players. However, on Day 1 of the second Test, England won the toss and decided to bat first and they were down to 149/4 at the end of the 57th over.