An anterior cruciate ligament injury can be a career threatening setback or death knell for any footballer. In many cases, players are not able to perform at the same level after an ACL injury. However, Indian footballer Sandesh Jhingan is an example of how one can overcome such a setback and come back even stronger.
The 28-year-old was declared the All India Football Federation's footballer of the year for the 2020-21 season after what was a stellar campaign for both club and country.
The ATK Mohun Bagan centre-back had suffered the dreaded injury during a practice game back in 2019 and he was out for an entire season.
However, the India international rediscovered his form at Bagan as he was instrumental for Antonio Habas' team who reached the ISL final. Being declared the player of the year on what was his birthday, Jhingan says he didn't look at his injury as a setback and instead chose to come back stronger.
"It feels like a dream. It's great that I'm gonna win the award on my birthday, it was going to be the best birthday gift I could imagine. So I'm really happy," said Jhingan during a media interaction on Wednesday.
He further added: "What happened to me with that injury is nothing. There are people who don't know where they are going to get their next meal from and kids sleeping on the road. There are people who have their family members in hospitals fighting for their lives," he said.
Besides helping Bagan reach the ISL final, Jhingan also played a crucial role in helping India get a place in the qualifiers for the 2023 Asian Cup. India finished third in their group in the FIFA World Cup qualifiers and Jhingan was ever present for the team at the back.
The towering defender felt that India could have done better but admitted that it was time to look ahead.
"The mentality of the squad is that even if we had topped the group, we would feel that we could have done better. Of course we wanted to do more. We could have done better and we should have done better. I'm the first one who will raise my hand and say we did not play to our potential," he said while adding that now the focus was on the Asian Cup qualifiers.
Jhingan who is one of the senior most members of the national team also said that he was learning a lot from the national team coach Igor Stimac.
"There are lots of small things I’ve picked up that have made me more professional. He himself has played as a defender at the highest level – at the World Cup and in the Premier League, so it’s a learning process every day with him," he said.
Meanwhile, Bala Devi was adjudged the women's football of the year and Suresh Singh won the emerging player of the year.