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“Four Months in a Wheelchair” – Gawad Discusses Return From Injury Hell
The moment it happened, Karim Abdel Gawad knew something was wrong.
The 29-year-old, who reached World No.1 in 2017, had been looking in good form in the final of the 2020 Manchester Open against then-World No.1 Mohamed ElShorbagy, when he felt a sudden, intense pain.
“I lunged for the ball and felt this massive pain in my heel,” Gawad explains.
Although he was somehow able to complete the match, eventually losing 3-1, Gawad had just suffered an injury that would eventually keep him out of squash for ten months and in a wheelchair for four of those.
“It was only a short break between Manchester and the World Tour Finals. I did some physio and played the World Tour Finals, but I was in massive pain,” the Egyptian explains.
With travel to specialists complicated by the COVID-19 pandemic, Gawad opted for cortisone injections and heel padding to manage the lingering mystery pain. This allowed him to get back on court, with Gawad playing through the severe discomfort to record a number of respectable results despite slipping outside of the top 10, including a title at the Bronze-level Karachi Open in 2022.
Eventually, though, the former World No.1 knew something had to be done if he were to enjoy his squash and reach his previous heights.
“The pain became too much and I couldn’t even walk,” Gawad says.
“I decided to take a break and travel to Germany to see a doctor there. They told me that the fat pad that protects the heel bone was broken, actually that I didn’t have one! I had a small gap [where the protective layer over the heel bone should have been].
“[Dr. Markus Walter] is one of the best doctors in Europe for feet and he told me that he’d never seen my case [in person]. It’s something they learn about in college, but there are no studies on it.”
The treatment prescribed included more injections to try to encourage the missing tissue to regenerate, coupled with strict restrictions on Gawad’s movement.
This meant that, besides travelling to Germany every two weeks, Gawad was effectively confined to his bed or sofa for four months, an experience he is keen never to repeat.
“I was doing nothing, as I couldn’t even walk. I was in a wheelchair for four months and [that period] was so boring for me. It was terrible and I don’t want to ever have that time again.
“The hardest thing was I didn’t know if I was going to come back or not.”
Fortunately for one of the game’s most popular players, the treatment worked and after four months of rest and a further six of physio, Gawad made his long-awaited return to the PSA World Tour at last week’s Black Ball Squash Open with an impressive 3-1 win over France’s Auguste Dussourd and a creditable 3-2 defeat to eventual champion Mohamed ElShorbagy.
While ‘the Baby-Faced Assassin’ looked more like his old self on court in Cairo, Gawad is taking nothing for granted yet, insisting that for now, just being on court is sufficient.
“To be honest, I can’t say I was under pressure, because I was out for so long and didn’t expect to be on court again. I was just happy and enjoying my time [at the Black Ball Open].
“I’ve missed everything about the tour: seeing the players, having breakfast with them, chilling out after matches – even just stretching! I was missing everything.
“So, being on court again was a dream for me, one that I’d been dreaming of for the last 10 months. And that was enough for me. I wasn’t thinking ‘I’m in a tournament’. I was just trying to enjoy the atmosphere of being in Egypt again and playing PSA Tour matches again.”
Gawad adds that he’s feeling far more assured in his body now, though expectations will stay tempered with the ever-looming danger of a repeat of the injury a possibility: “I’m more confident after treatment and the [protective] insoles help a lot. I think I’m moving well.
“I can’t say if it’s going to happen again or not, no one knows. But for meantime, I’m just happy to be on court.
“There’s a bit of pressure because all the tournaments [and subsequent ranking points] I’d played last season are going to expire in the next two-to-three months. But if I start to think too much about that I’ll put myself under pressure and that’s something I don’t want to happen.
“I’m just enjoying being on court, no matter whether that’s winning or losing.
“That’s enough for me.”
Karim Abdel Gawad will be playing in the upcoming GillenMarkets Canary Wharf Classic 2023 (12-17 March), where he’ll be taking on Dimitri Steinmann.
For more on the GillenMarkets Canary Wharf Squash Classic, visit the official tournament website or follow the event on Twitter. For updates on the GillenMarkets Canary Wharf Classic, visit the PSA World Tour website, or follow the PSA on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and TikTok.
