Players gripped by injury fear as World Cup draws near
World Cup fever is reaching a fever pitch in India, where the tournament begins Monday.
India vs Bangladesh – World Cup 2011 (Photo: World Cup’s official Twitter handle)
And among the concerns for players around the world are the impact of a potential broken ham set on a crutch of a hamstring.
“I was lucky to have a good work ethic, especially at school. I was never a kid who did any kind of shoddy work or was lazy. But, when I was in the national pool, I was a very good swimmer. But I used to go and watch matches with my friends and that also became my life. So, when I started going to football matches, I was very excited and wanted to play. But the coaches had warned me not to get too carried away and said there were no jobs in football.
“Now, I feel I should be cautious with injuries and try and take it easy. But, that’s what my parents told me,” he says.
His mother Kavitha, who works as a domestic help in a Chennai residence, says: “We also have strict rules at home — if a member of the family gets an injury, then the family member who could have intervened is told not to do so. My sister and my brother also have strict rules that they follow while playing.
“So, my mother and sister told me, my brother and I should only go to the gym for our training sessions. And the rest of the time, we should not be playing any football.”
On the evening itself the family went to the gym to celebrate his brother’s birthday. “We saw him jumping up and down with joy and then we decided to celebrate it with a lot of alcohol,” he says.
He is not alone in fretting over injuries following the World Cup.
In his native Maldives, Abdul Kader’s injury-prone career was cut short by injury, forcing him to retire in 2007.
His last match for his national side was against Nepal.
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