Transitions: Afridi’s father passes away at 64

Funeral prayers will be said after Asr prayers in Madina Mosque, situated in block 13-D in Gulshan-e-Iqbal.

KARACHI:

The father of former Pakistan cricket team captain Shahid Afridi, Sahebzada Fazal-ur Rehman Afridi, passed away at the age of 64 at a private hospital on Wednesday.

Sahebzada Fazal-ur Rehman had fought a prolonged battle with intestinal cancer and had undergone surgery in the US in May. Last month, he was admitted to an Intensive Care Unit as his health took a turn for the worse.

According to his son Mushtaq Afridi, his funeral prayers were offered at Madina Masjid in Gulshan-e-Iqbal and he was laid to rest at the Scott Colony graveyard. He leaves behind six sons, five daughters and a widow.

More than a thousand people, including the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Director General Javed Miandad, PCB Director Wasim Bari, PCB Regional General Manager Razaullah Khan, National Stadium Manager Arshad Khan, PCB Chief Selector Mohsin Hasan Khan, Sindh Chief Minister’s Adviser for Sports Haleem Adil Sheikh, Sindh Chief Secretary Raja Abbas, Karachi Cricket Association President Siraj ul Islam Bukhari and secretary Ejaz Ahmed Farooqi along with other former cricketers and sports celebrities attended the funeral amid strict security. Prime Minister Syed Yousaf Raza Gilani, Muttahida Qaumi Movement chief Altaf Hussain, Sindh Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah were among the officials who sent their condolences. According to PPI, Afridi had cancelled his foreign tours in light of his father’s condition.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 21^st,  2011.