Afghanistan cricket hero Shapoor Zadran battles for life at Delhi hospital, family issues urgent plea for A+ blood
Former Afghanistan pacer Shapoor Zadran is battling for his life at a Delhi hospital. One of the faces of Afghanistan cricket during their rise at the international level, Shapoor Zadran is in urgent need for A+ (A Positive) blood, his family has said on Wednesday. A former left-handed pacer, Zadran is suffering from Hemophagocytic Lymphohistiocytosis (HLH) which is a rare and life-threatening immune disorder.The 38-year-old is currently admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) of a New Delhi hospital, where he has been undergoing treatment since January. According to Shapoor's brother Ghamai, his medical condition was first detected last October.On the medical advice of doctors in Kabul, Shapoor was brought to India for specialised treatment on January 18 and has been admitted in the ICU since then. According to Ghamai, Shapoor initially showed improvement for about 20 days, but his condition worsened again due to a recurring infection.Shapoor was discharged after around 20 days, but soon developed a stomach problem. Ghamai took him back to the hospital, where his condition deteriorated even further. It was around March 26 that Shapoor underwent a bone-marrow test, which revealed he was in Stage Four of HLH.Speaking to Livemint on Wednesday, Ghamai said Shapoor called out for help for A+ blood donors. “He needs A+ blood, not from any blood bank but fresh. The requirement is that if there are any brothers in the New Delhi area, please come forward to help my brother,” Ghamai said over phone.“After the blood samples are collected, it will go testing. Once that is passed, the blood collected will be directly infused into Shapoor's body. Stocks from the blood bank will not work as Shapoor needs platelets,” he added.Shapoor's family keeps faith in Delhi hospitalAsked about if they are planning to shift Shapoor to a batter facility in the country, Ghamai revealed he refused an offer to treat his brother at the Ambani Hospital in Mumbai. “Mumbai Indians spinner Allah Ghazanfar visited Shapoor for two days when he was in Delhi for IPL,” Ghamai said.“He has been in constant touch with me. Other players have also been in touch with me. Ghazanfar even tried to talk with the Ambani Hospital but the hospital Shapoor is in (in Delhi), it is the best for him,” he added.The likes of Rashid Khan, Mohammad Nabi and Asghar Afghan have always been in constant touch with Ghamai.Shapoor Zadran's international careerShapoor comes a generation of Afghanistan cricketers that gave the country is first identity at the world stage. In fact, he was one of the faces that carried played a huge part in Afghanistan's rise from an associate nation to a world beater. Having made his international debut in 2009, Shapoor was a part of Afghanistan's first-ever T20 World Cup and ODI World cup squads in 2010 and 2015 respectively.The highlight of Shapoor's career came during the 2015 ODI World Cup when Afghanistan beat Scotland by one wicket in Dunedin for theor first-ever World Cup win. Shapoor was in the middle when Afghanistan completed a historic chase. Overall, he played 44 ODIs and 36 T20Is for Afghanistan between 2009 and 2020.About the AuthorKoushik PaulKoushik lives and breathes sports. After transitioning from his own aspirations of becoming a professional athlete, he successfully channeled that lifelong passion into a prolific career, documenting the action both from the sidelines and the editorial desk. With over eight years of industry experience, Koushik joined LiveMint as a Deputy Chief Content Producer in 2024, following impactful stints at Outlook India, India.com, Sportskeeda, Women’s CricZone, and OrissaPOST. A 2017 Journalism and Mass Communication graduate from Maharaja Manindra Chandra College, Kolkata, Koushik has reported on high-profile e
Discussion (0)