Australian number three Matthew Karwalski will have surgery on a hip injury later this week, as he bids to prove his fitness ahead of the Commonwealth Games next year.
Karwalski, who recently broke into the world top-50 earlier this month, impressed during his second-round defeat to Gregory Gaultier at the World Championship last month and is roundly expected to represent Australia in Glasgow next year.
However, the 28-year-old has been troubled by a hip complaint for most of the season and is hopeful of rectifying the problem before the Australian squad is announced in April.
“It’s really gotten worse the more I’ve played on it this season,” the world number 49 told The Herald.
“It started in September, but I didn’t have many events so I played through it, and after the World Champs it got really bad so I’ve been getting treatment for it. I saw a specialist and going forward it looks like it’ll be an arthroscope to clean up the hip joint.
“The wear and tear is starting to add up, and over time it’s destroyed the cartilage in my hip joint.”
Despite the setback, Karwalski is already targeting a return to competitive action in March and is quietly confident that he will earn a spot in the team.
“At the moment it’s looking really positive for my inclusion as they take the top three ranked guys in Australia in singles and I’m currently number three.
“In the doubles it looks like I’ll be partnering former world champion David Palmer, who is also my coach,” added Karwalski.
Source: The Herald; Pictures by Steve Cubbins (SquashSite)