KARACHI: Pakistan’s premier wrestler and two-time beach wrestling world champion Mohammad Inam on Tuesday said that it would not be easy to regain top shape for competitive wrestling when the restrictions on the sport were lifted.
“It will take a minimum of three months to regain top shape and form after we resume training when the situation improves and the government lifts restrictions,” Inam told ‘The News’ in an interview.
“The situation is very bad due to lockdown. In the rest of the games like cricket and football you can practise but in wrestling which is a body contact game you cannot practise. You can only work on your fitness,” Inam said.
“The body condition has been deteriorated. When we return to the mat our muscles will have to be developed again and such things take one month. So I think a minimum of three months will be required for regaining actual top shape which makes one able to compete at international level,” the two-time Commonwealth Games gold medallist said.
Inam agreed that grapplers would feel a lot of pressure when they would compete after the COVID-19 barren patch. “Definitely pressure will be there as you don’t play the game for a long time and when you return to the arena definitely pressure will be felt,” Inam said.
“But all wrestlers of the world will feel pressure as they all have suffered like us,” Inam said.
“But the point is how we will tackle such things. When we return to proper training we will have mat training and focus on future fights as work on physical fitness is already being done,” the 2019 World Beach Games gold medallist said.
“It will require top focus on the part of the grapplers and only then will we overcome all hurdles,” Inam said.
Responding to a question Inam said that it had been a testing time for those wrestlers who were in the twilight of their careers.
“The most difficult time is for for those wrestlers who are in the final stage of their career. At this stage one tries to play maximum events and earn maximum medals for the country,” Inam said.
“After losing one year or so due to global pandemic I don’t think it would be that easy for them to make a recovery and compete in international circuit,” Inam said.
“Fresh people will get their chances but such types of players will have to face big issues. I don’t think it will be easy for them to stage a comeback after a long inactive period. It’s a difficult task,” the wrestler said. “So many players will leave,” Inam was quick to add.
“Yes, the issue is that majority of the players had planned for the 2020 Olympics which have been shifted to 2021. If Olympics are held next year then there is a chance for all such grapplers to continue till then but if Olympics were cancelled then big names would close their careers,” Inam said.