From his hospital bed, this young Valorant player demolished the opposing team

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Nishil Shah was hospitalized with a medical emergency, but that didn't keep him out of the match.

Nishil Shah
(Image credit: Nishil Shah (via Twitter))

Hockey players are notoriously tough. Whether it's getting stitched up between periods so they can get back on the ice or pulling their own teeth out with their bare hands after eating a high stick, they have a well-deserved reputation for playing through just about anything. Based on a recent performance by Valorant collegiate player Nishil Shah, we might soon have to start according the same respect to esports players.

Shah plays varsity esports for Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia. But on the cusp of his first College Valorant match (CVal), a medical emergency sent him to the hospital, where he was diagnosed with pancreatitis. The opposing team refused to reschedule the match, according to a tweet from esports reporter Jake Lucky, and so the ODU team agreed to go ahead, with Shah playing from his hospital bed—and they won the best-of-three contest in dominant fashion, 2-0.

Shah's accomplishment quickly came to the attention of several esports pros, who congratulated him for his effort and the outcome. "What a gamer, glad he's all good now," Skyler "Relyks" Weaver tweeted. 

"But imagine refusing to reschedule over a medical emergency and then still losing 13-1 and 13-3." 

Riot Games also took notice, and awarded Shah a gun buddy (a cosmetic accessory) and some Valorant points for his effort.

(Image credit: Riot Games (via Twitter))

Playing from the confines of a hospital bed wasn't the only challenge facing Shah in his match. He said on Twitter that he was playing "on 60 fps with so much packet loss," and that his mouse pad—which you can see in the picture—is his sister's laptop cover. He also had to take a break mid-match, so the medical staff could "put some shots in me real quick." That's hardcore.

As for the team they beat—West Virginia Wesleyan College—one of Shah's teammates said they're "getting a lot of hate for not rescheduling," but didn't appear to harbor any hard feelings—which I suppose is easier to do after you've come out on top.

"I feel bad for all the backlash they are getting on Twitter," Mitch tweeted. "We beat them convincingly and that should be enough imo."

For its part, WVWC tweeted a GG after the match, which—not unsurprisingly—was not as well received.

Nishil, by the way, has apparently recovered: Another teammate, Nick, said on Twitter that "he is fine now."

Andy Chalk
Andy Chalk
US News Lead

Andy has been gaming on PCs from the very beginning, starting as a youngster with text adventures and primitive action games on a cassette-based TRS80. From there he graduated to the glory days of Sierra Online adventures and Microprose sims, ran a local BBS, learned how to build PCs, and developed a longstanding love of RPGs, immersive sims, and shooters. He began writing videogame news in 2007 for The Escapist and somehow managed to avoid getting fired until 2014, when he joined the storied ranks of PC Gamer. He covers all aspects of the industry, from new game announcements and patch notes to legal disputes, Twitch beefs, esports, and Henry Cavill. Lots of Henry Cavill.