Tamim Iqbal Suffers Major Heart Attack During Match, Saved by Swift Decisions and Medical Response:

As Tamim walked out for the coin toss, officials at the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) in Mirpur were making arrangements for a directors’ meeting set for 12:00 pm.

Initially, he had stayed to pay attention to the proceedings at hand, but in just a couple of hours, it was a completely different scene. Instead of being out on the field, he was lying down in a hospital bed in Savar. He had suffered a heart attack during the match and was subsequently fighting for his life. Board members had already cancelled the meeting as they were speeding towards Savar, amidst the chaos of waiting on social media for any updates regarding their beloved Tamim.

Panic spread after the information of Tamim’s heart attack began circulating and only settled three hours later when doctors at the KPJ Specialised Hospital announced that he had regained consciousness, allowing the general public to relax their worst fears. The 36 year old remained bedridden for his heart to recuperate, but his condition turned stable.

In any case, the match between Mohammedan and Dhaka did not get called off. In Taibu’s absence, his Mohammedan teammates, which include Mushfiqur Rahim, Mahmudullah, and Mehedi Hasan Miraz, played the game with a heavy heart, but managed to emerge victorious. They were quick to go to the hospital afterwards to visit their captain.

At the same time, Tamim’s surgical procedure was followed by a set of prudent choices made by a few people which may have saved his life. This was further corroborated by numerous sources detailing the events in sequential order.

The whole episode started as normally as it could have, with TKK’s first complaint being gastro liver issues. He was taken for a check-up at the KPJ Specialised Hospital located approximately 3 km away from BKSP, where he received some preliminary treatment before heading back to the venue for a second time.

In no time, a helicopter was flown into BKSP to airlift Tanmim to Dhaka to undergo treatment at one of the hospitals in the capital. However, his health condition was in much worse shape by the time he was closing the distance to the helicopter.

“Tamim was not even conscious. Dalim [team trainer] was pressing on his chest, foam was coming out of his mouth, there was no pulse,” Match Referee Debabrata Paul, was present during the whole episode and told The Daily Star.

“I remember we were looking to take Tamim on board the helicopter, but we turned the decision. With hindsight, that didn’t help him at all,” Debabrata said while also sharing why he is happy with the treatment provided on admission to KPJ hospital.

“I served as the match official, and I remember speaking with the CEO [Nizamuddin Chowdhury] and instructed him to ring for the hospital so that we could get attention the moment we reached there,” he said.

“By the grace of the Almighty, everything was coordinated very well. We arrived here and there was a team of the doctors waiting. Tamim was taken to the emergency room and his treatment commenced. The physicians performed as many procedures as possible in the least amount of time, and they were very efficient,” he continued.

Tamim is currently under observation for 48 hours at the hospital's Coronary Care Unit (CCU) after a successful stenting surgery. An angiogram revealed significant obstructive lesions in the coronary arteries with one vessel fully occluded and another partially so.

His next treatment plan is yet to be determined, but the most important factor contributing to saving the life of the cricketer was the efficient decision implementation and activity at the hospital.