Joginder Sharma’s last-over heroics instantly propelled him into the limelight during the World Twenty20 championship last September. But, out of the team since then, the only news he made after that fateful final against Pakistan was when he was signed by Chennai for Rs 90 lakh for the Indian Premier League (IPL).It has now been confirmed that Joginder is nursing a heel injury and had been advised surgery that could keep him out of cricket for a possible six months — which means he could miss the T20 tournament starting on April 18.“He had met me last month in Mumbai and I had advised him to undergo surgery but it’s up to him what he has to do. I can’t force him to have an operation,” Dr Anant Joshi, the board’s official orthopaedic specialist, told The Indian Express over the phone.But Joginder insists there is nothing to worry. “I am fit. I had problems in my left heel but I think I am almost okay now,” he said from Jaipur. “I got a second MRI done and sought a second opinion. My doctor told me that I have a ligament tear and can start bowling again in 10 days. I am confident of giving my best in the Indian Premier League.”The 24-year-old from Rohtak had sustained the injury in a Ranji Trophy plate match against Goa, where he claimed six wickets. He played with pain-killers until he could go no further after a match against Madhya Pradesh from December 9-12. He has been out of action for almost four months now and, despite being selected for North Zone in the Duleep Trophy and for Haryana in the Ranji one-dayers, he didn’t play a single game in either tournament. He has been overlooked for the Deodhar Trophy as well.Had this been a matter of Indian team selection, Joginder would have had to get Joshi’s certificate of fitness, but things will perhaps work differently in IPL. Some sources say that his insistence to avoid an operation is because IPL terms clearly state that if a cricketer plays less than four matches in a season due to injury, he will be entitled to only one-fourth of the total sum promised in his contract. Joginder is risking his career for money, they add. Joginder denies this.It’s hard to say whose opinion is right in this battle of two medical experts. But it does raise a question: Is the IPL money pouring into cricket really so big that players such as Joginder will go to any lengths to make sure they don’t lose out on some quick bucks, even at the cost of their future?
