Cricket legend Ian Botham has claimed he got infected by Covid-19 early this year, but mistook it for “a bad case of flu”.
The contagious disease has infected over 10 million people worldwide, killing more than 500,000.
“I think the thing to remember is that six months ago no one even knew what this was, hadn’t heard of it,” the former England captain told Good Morning Britain.
“I’ve actually had it. I had it at the end of December, beginning of January, and I thought I had a bad case of flu. It’s amazing how long it has been around, we don’t know all the details.”
Botham urged people to show a bit of patience as he hoped things will improve.
While the three-Test series beginning July 8 between England and the West Indies will mark the resumption of international cricket following the coronavirus break, club cricket in England is still on hold.
Britain’s Prime Minister Boris Johnson had last Tuesday called the cricket ball “a natural vector of disease” and his decision to uphold the ban on recreational cricket was slammed by former cricketers, including former England captain Michael Vaughan.
The 64-year-old Botham has little doubt that the sport will begin soon since social distancing is possible in cricket.