Afghanistan pace pioneer Shapoor Zadran dies in India at 38 after battle with rare illness

New Delhi: Former Afghanistan fast bowler and one of the country’s cricketing pioneers, Shapoor Zadran, passed away in India on Tuesday following a prolonged illness, the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) confirmed. He was 38 and would have turned 39 on Wednesday. Zadran, who represented Afghanistan in 44 ODIs and 36 T20Is between 2009 and 2020, had been undergoing treatment in New Delhi after being diagnosed with stage four haemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH), a rare and life-threatening condition that triggers severe inflammation and can damage the bone marrow, liver, spleen and lymph nodes. He had been in the intensive care unit (ICU) since May.

His health issues began in October last year, after which doctors advised him to seek advanced treatment in India. With the support of Afghanistan star Rashid Khan and ACB chairman Mirwais Ashraf, his visa was expedited, allowing him to be admitted to a New Delhi hospital on January 18. IANS

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