Joshna Chinappa elated after making a comeback from injury

Joshna Chinappa expresses joy in returning to squash post-surgery, focusing on rehab and future competitions.

Joshna Chinappa, here on Wednesday, expressed happiness in being back on the court and playing again with her friends and teammates after the knee surgery she underwent in December.

She added that she is still rehabilitating and focused on getting back to full fitness.

“It’s been interesting because I wasn’t sure I would ever get back on court again. My surgeon and my physios were very confident that I would come back to play. I moved to Bengaluru for the last five months. I worked with my physio Yash Pandey and his team there.

“And when I heard this tournament was coming up, I was quite excited to see if I could be fit enough to play. Three days ago, the physio said: ‘Okay, you can get on court. But don’t push yourself too hard, because you’re not fully ready.’

“I’m just so happy to play squash again. Winning, obviously, is special. But just to get on court, hit the ball, play with friends, play with my teammates, that’s what squash is for me. That’s the joy I get out of it,” she said after winning the mixed doubles title with Abhay Singh at the HCL National doubles squash championship.

She also expressed the desire to compete in both singles and doubles. “Right now, I’m just trying to get back to full fitness. I’m still in rehab for my surgery. Once I’m fully fit in a few weeks, I’ll take a call on what singles tournaments to play.”

She mentioned that participating in the Asian doubles championships in July is an immediate goal.