South Africa’s Solo Nqweni tests positive for coronavirus
South African all-rounder Solo Nqweni, who plays for Eastern Province in domestic cricket, has become the third known cricketer to test positive for the coronavirus, after Pakistan’s Zafar Sarfraz and Scotland’s Majid Haq, according to a report on ESPNcricinfo.
Nqweni had already been battling Guillan-Barré syndrome, a rare disorder where the body’s immune system attacks the nerves, causing weakness and eventually leading to paralysis.
So last year I got GBS, and have been battling this disease for the past 10 months and I’m only half way through my recovery. I got TB, my liver failed and my kidney failed. Now today I tested positive for corona virus. I don’t understand why all of this is happening to me.
— Solo Nicholas Nqweni (@SoloNqweni) May 7, 2020
Nqweni had spent four weeks in an induced coma last year, breathing through the help of a machine. His family had to rely on external funding, including from the South African national team, who contributed R50,000, to cover the costs of transportation and treatment. Ngweni had also been struck down by tuberculosis, which severely affected his liver and kidneys.
Nqweni’s agent, Rob Humphries, however, is confident of a full recovery from the novel coronavirus.
