Snapping out of injury, Yuvraj Walmiki is back

Battling a gruesome injury for the last six months, Yuvraj Walmiki, who has represented India on  many occasions, eyes a dreamy return to the hockey field. In August, the forward suffered an ankle injury, while he was playing a game in Bangalore that forced him to undergo four surgeries.

“One of the players stamped on my foot and I went against my weight because of which I broke my ankle completely,” recalls the forward.

This is not his first career-threatening injury. The centre-forward made quick progress after his debut in 2010, earning a place in the 2012 London Olympic squad but only to have his dream splintered because of a hamstring injury. After scoring a crucial penalty stroke against Pakistan in the Asian Champions Trophy, Yuvraj’s confidence was sky high and an injury was the only hurdle that could have stopped him. Becoming an Olympian is still a dream for the Mumbai lad.

The injury in Bangalore was followed by 60 bed ridden days. After that period, his ankle was coated in a plaster which was removed recently. Going through physiotherapy, he is travelling with the Central Railway squad to Jhansi for which, he might get a scolding from his physiotherapist. “I will play 10-15 minutes in these games if needed, just to get back in touch. I have been out of professional hockey for a long time,” he says.   

“I was doing really well before (the injury) and it was unfortunate. I was sure about playing the nationals for Mumbai. The tournament is in March and I don’t even know if I will be 100 per cent fit by then,” he adds.

His family of six still lives in the same diminutive house in Marine Lines that welcomed electricity just seven years ago. Yuvraj describes the years that went in darkness quite literally as “hardships.”

The rise in fortunes of Yuvraj and his brother Devindar Walmiki has helped the family monetarily, but the house that they live in is still the same. “One thing that I have realised in life is that nothing is easy. My upbringing has taught me a lot of things and it has made me strong, both physically and mentally. I did not let this injury affect me mentally which made it a lot easier,” asserts the forward.

“Although the government promised us a new house in 2011 after Asian Championships, there has been nothing from their side. In our small room, my brother still sleeps on the floor and I sleep on the bed. The new government has told me to wait for a month or two. I have waited for seven years now, so a month is nothing,” says Yuvraj, referring to the promise made to him after he represented and scored for India in the Asian Champions Trophy, China.

The World Cup is scheduled to be hosted in Bhubaneswar, at the end of the year in November. As there is a new coach for the men’s senior team who is not well informed about Yuvraj, the task is uphill for the forward in the New Year.