, July 7 -- Former Afghanistan fast bowler Shapoor Zadran, who played a key role in his country's rise in international cricket, died on Tuesday at the age of 38 after a prolonged illness, the Afghanistan Cricket Board said.

Zadran had been receiving treatment at a hospital in New Delhi since January after being diagnosed with an advanced form of Hemophagocytic Lymphohistiocytosis (HLH), a rare immune disorder in which overactive white blood cells attack the body's own organs.

His family said his condition was complicated by a severe infection, including tuberculosis that spread to his brain.

His brother, Ghamai Zadran, and former Afghanistan captain Asghar Afghan accompanied him to India after he fell ill in Afghanistan last October....