"Pawan is not just important for us but for entire India" - Tamil Thalaivas coach gives update on 'national treasure' Pawan Sehrawat
Tamil Thalaivas head coach J Udaya Kumar has provided an update on his team's captain Pawan Sehrawat. Kumar said that the Thalaivas management will not rush him back to the mat but will wait for him to fully recover from his knee injury.
Pawan Sehrawat hurt his knee badly while attempting a tackle in the Tamil Thalaivas' Pro Kabaddi 2022 season opener against the Gujarat Giants. He was stretchered off and did not return to the mat.
Earlier on Tuesday night, the Tamil Thalaivas took on the Haryana Steelers in PKL 2022. Pawan was expectedly absent from the team's playing seven.
When asked about his fitness at the post-match press conference, coach J Udaya Kumar said:
"Pawan is not just important for us but for entire India. He is a national treasure. We are thinking about the next Asian Games. The team management is not willing to take any risks."
"We will wait until he attains full fitness and then we will bring him back in the playing seven. Hopefully, he will recover soon and return to the mat," he added.
The Tamil Thalaivas raiding unit failed to get going against the Haryana Steelers during their face-off. Although defender Sagar Rathee registered a High 5, the Thalaivas suffered a 22-27 defeat against the Steelers.
Will Pawan Sehrawat play for Tamil Thalaivas in their next Pro Kabaddi League 2022 match?
J Udaya Kumar subtly hinted that Pawan will likely be unavailable for the team's next few matches. The Tamil Thalaivas will play their third match of Pro Kabaddi 2022 against U Mumba on Friday evening.
The rest of the squad will be keen to earn as many points as possible in the standings while Pawan recovers from his injury. The Tamil Thalaivas are currently 10th in the points table with four points to their name.