Zimbabwe captain Sikandar Raza suffers personal tragedy

By Agencies

Zimbabwe’s T20I captain Sikandar Raza suffered a personal tragedy as his younger brother, Muhammad Mahdi, died at the age of 13 on Monday, December 29.

Mahdi was laid to rest on Tuesday at the Warren Hills Cemetery in Harare.

The Zimbabwe cricket board revealed that Raza’s brother was born with haemophilia, a rare genetic bleeding disorder where the blood doesn’t clot properly.

Zimbabwe cricket, in their statement, said that Mahdi lost his life due to recent health complications.

Zimbabwe cricket extended their condolences to Raza and his family for the untimely passing of Mahdi.

“Zimbabwe Cricket (ZC) extends its heartfelt condolences to Zimbabwe T20I Captain Sikandar Raza and his family following the untimely passing of his beloved younger brother, Muhammad Mahdi, who died on 29 December 2025 in Harare at the age of 13.

“Muhammad Mahdi was born with haemophilia and sadly lost his life due to recent health complications. He was laid to rest on 30 December 2025 at Warren Hills Cemetery in Harare. The ZC Board, Management, Players and Staff stand united in solidarity with Sikandar Raza and his family during this profoundly difficult time.

“May Allah grant them comfort and strength and may Muhammad Mahdi’s soul rest in eternal peace,” read the statement from Zimbabwe cricket.

Raza was last seen in action for the Sharjah Warriorz during the ILT20 2025 campaign, where he played 10 matches and scored 171 runs and picked up 10 wickets.

Despite his all-round efforts, Warriorz failed to make it to the play-offs of the tournament after finishing at the bottom of the table with three wins out of 10 matches.