Bajrang Punia set to miss World Championships owing to ligament tear
Bajrang Punia claimed a bronze medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics
|Tokyo Olympics bronze medalist Bajrang Punia will miss out on the World Championships in October, after he was advised six-week rehabilitation to overcome a ligament tear that he suffered in the build-up to the Games. The wrestling world championships will be held in Oslo, Norway from October 2-10.
India’s star wrestler Bajrang Punia suffered an injury at the Ali Aliev Tournament, in Russia and had to forfeit a match owing to the situation. The grappler, however, claimed a bronze medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, but, his ligament tear won’t allow him to compete at the World Championships in Oslo, from October 2-10.
As per the reports of PTI, Bajrang recently underwent an MRI scan to gauge the magnitude of his injury and consulted Dr. Dinshaw Pardiwala, who heads the Centre for Sports Medicine at Mumbai’s Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital. The doctor has advised the wrestler to undergo a six-week rehabilitation programme, which will automatically keep him out of the world championships.
"It's a ligament tear, and I have been asked to follow a rehabilitation programme for six weeks by Dr Dinshaw. I won't be able to compete at the World Championship. The Worlds was the only major championship in the calendar for this year. I don't see myself competing in any other tournament this season," said Bajrang Punia.
Bajrang, a potential gold medal contender at the 2020 Tokyo Games, lost his semi-final bout to Azerbaijan’s Haji Aliyev but blanked Kazakhstan’s Daulet Niyazbekov in the bronze medal fixture to end the campaign on a high. As informed by the Olympics medallist, Bajrang will be undergoing his rehabilitation in Sonepat.
"Since it was my first Olympics and I had a dream to win an Olympic medal, I competed through pain in Tokyo. I had to do it. I am doing it myself in Sonepat. Dr. Dinshaw has advised a few exercises that I am doing every day now in the gym. The mat-training time will also go into the rehab," added Bajrang.Â
