Michael Carberry, former England opener, diagnosed with a cancerous tumour

After a prolonged sickness, former England opener and Hampshire batsman, Michael Carberry was diagnosed with a cancerous tumour.

Carberry was rested for the Hampshire’s championship match last week against Warwickshire and Dale Benkenstein, the Hampshire coach, said it was so that he could undergo tests. After his visit to a specialist on Tuesday, it was confirmed that he had cancer. He would further the treatment after another series of tests.

A release from Hampshire on Thursday read, “Following recent reports about his health and now that he has spoken fully to his family, friends and team-mates, Hampshire can confirm that after a brief period of feeling unwell, a specialist has determined that Michael Carberry has a tumour that is cancerous. Further tests will be undertaken before the relevant treatment commences. He is grateful for the messages of support that he has received and hopes that he can focus on his treatment whilst the privacy of those close to him is respected.”

After Hampshire’s T20 Blast against Glamorgan, Giles White, the director of cricket, said: “It is terrible news, we are in shock. Our thoughts are with Carbs and his family at the moment. He found out a couple of days ago. It has been a tough couple of days for him the past few days and hopefully he gets through this. We will stand by him all the way through to help him and support him in any way we can.”

It is not the first time Carberry has suffered a life-threatening disease. He had to pull out of an England Performance Programme trip to Australia in the winter of 2010 when he was diagnosed with a blood clot on his lungs, which emerged after he had suffered attacks of breathlessness while fielding and batting.

It was feared at one stage that he would never play cricket again but the condition was controlled by medication and he recovered to win back his England place three years later.

This is how the twitter world reacted to the tragic news and wished him all the luck in the future: