Sri Lanka government requirements state anyone testing positive must isolate for 10 days putting him out of realistic contention for the first Test which starts in Galle on Jan 14. It is not known if he tested positive for the new variant sweeping across the UK.
The players were hosed down with disinfectant spray by officials wearing hazmat protection suits when they landed in Sri Lanka and have been in quarantine in their hotel since arriving.
But the worry is infection could have occurred last week when the squad trained indoors at Loughborough University or on the 11 hour flight, although there was a degree of social distancing in place on the plane.
England were due to emerge from isolation on Wednesday to begin training outdoors for the first Test but that has been postponed for 24 hours while they await the results of the next round of testing. The players will be tested again on Friday before travelling from their base in Hambantota to Galle, the venue for both Tests.
Joe Root, the England Test captain, said last week the tour would not be abandoned in the event of a handful of covid cases. England named a 17-man squad and six travelling reserves for the Sri Lanka tour to cover this kind of scenario so losing Moeen, and almost certainly Woakes as well, for the first Test is not insurmountable but if it emerges there are a clutch of positive cases then the series will be in doubt.
There is little wriggle room for delaying the series with England due to fly straight to India from Sri Lanka the day after the final Test on Jan 27. The Test series in India begins just a little more than a week later on Feb 5.
An England spokesman confirmed Moeen will be travelling to Galle to sit out his isolation in a 'private residence', enabling him to stay in touch with the England medical team and quickly rejoin the squad once he is allowed out of quarantine.
Remarkably, Moeen is the first England player to test positive for covid after a successful home summer locking out the virus with a strict bio-bubble. The tour to South Africa in December was rocked by positive tests for the home players and hotel staff. When two England players tested positive, only to be cleared later, the ODI series was called off.
The ECB has employed a covid compliance officer on tour for the first time to ensure biosecure protocols are in place after concerns were raised in South Africa. They have also provided a psychologist to help with mental wellbeing for players.
Given the expense of a chartered flight, around £350,000 ($NZ662,387), it is surprising the ECB allowed the players to travel together in the same car to the airport, a move that may cost Woakes his place in the first Test.
Moeen was unlikely to play in the first Test with Dom Bess remaining the first choice off-spinner and England wanting to combine him with left-armer Jack Leach.
If Woakes tests negative, England will have to decide if he has had enough time to acclimatise to tough conditions after his week in self isolation. If not, then Sam Curran is his likely replacement.
