Afghanistan Cricket Team With Gautam Gambhir. Image Credits: AFP/PTI
Social media recently became flooded with rumours about Afghanistan cricketer Rahmat Shah. Many posts claimed that the 32-year-old batter had passed away ahead of Afghanistan’s 2026 tour of India. As a result, cricket fans across the world started sharing condolence messages and expressing shock online.
However, the reports about Rahmat Shah’s death are false. The confusion happened after an Instagram post shared by AFG cricketer Karim Janat was wrongly translated by several users.
How Did The Rumours About Rahmat Shah Start?
The misunderstanding began when Karim Janat posted a condolence message in Pashto on Instagram. Several users depended on Instagram’s automatic translation feature. Unfortunately, the translated version created confusion and made people believe that Rahmat Shah himself had died.
Soon after that, social media users started reposting the message. In addition, many cricket fans began mourning the reported death of the Afghan cricketer without checking the actual meaning of the post.
The translated message on Instagram reportedly said that Karim Janat was saddened by the “death of Rahmat Shah.” Therefore, many readers accepted the statement as true and shared it widely.
What Was The Actual Meaning Of Karim Janat’s Post?
Later, another translation using Google Translate revealed the correct meaning of the message. The original post was actually about the death of Rahmat Shah’s mother, not the cricketer himself.
It is important to note that Karim Janat’s post was meant to offer sympathy and prayers to Rahmat Shah and his family during their difficult time. The message also prayed for peace for the deceased and strength for the family.
Therefore, the viral rumours were based on a translation error. Moreover, the misunderstanding spread quickly as many users shared incomplete information without verifying the facts.
There is no official report confirming the death of Rahmat Shah. Notably, the Afghanistan batter is alive, and the viral social media claims are completely false.
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Rahmat Shah’s Cricket Career
It is important to note that Rahmat Shah remains one of the important players in the AFG. Over the years, the star cricketer has played a key role in the growth of Afghanistan cricket on the international stage.
The right-handed batter has represented Afghanistan in 11 Test matches, 125 One Day Internationals (ODIs), and one T20 International. Furthermore, he has delivered several strong performances for his country in major tournaments.
Notably, Rahmat Shah was last seen playing in an ODI match against Bangladesh in November, 2025.
Rahmat Shah Likely To Feature In Afghanistan’s Squad
Meanwhile, Rahmat Shah is expected to be included in Afghanistan’s squad for the upcoming India series. Notably, Afghanistan’s tour of India will begin after the Indian Premier League (IPL 2026) ends.
The tour starts with a one-off Test match at the PCA New Cricket Stadium in New Chandigarh from June 6 to June 10. After that, both teams will play a three-match ODI series. The ODI matches are scheduled to take place on June 14 in Dharamsala, June 17 in Lucknow, and June 20 in Chennai.
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