How boxer Nikhat Zareen put behind debilitating shoulder dislocation to clinch gold in Belgrade

In the 20th summer of her being, confronted by the harsh reality of competing in a treacherous sport like boxing, Nikhat Zareen found herself desolate. The former world junior champion had just dislocated her right shoulder at the All-India Inter University Championships and had been told by her physio that she needed surgery. “When I was told by the physio that I would have to undergo surgery, I was really scared. So many people told me that once an athlete undergoes surgery, she never comes back the same. That was disturbing me. I was also disturbed because the shoulder is what makes or breaks a boxer. The power of a boxer’s punches comes from their shoulders. It was very difficult for me because it was the first time I had sustained an injury of this magnitude,” recollects Nikhat, who competed at her first international event — the 56th Belgrade International Tournament — last week and won gold in the 51kg weight class. [caption id=“attachment_4452975” align=“alignleft” width=“379”] India’s Nikhat Zareen poses with her gold medal. Image courtesy: Twitter @jswsports[/caption] In the glint of the gold medal wrapped around her neck, Nikhat says she found vindication. “When I won, I kept thinking that finally I have proven myself. After the injury, even some of my friends were saying that she can do nothing now. But I would keep telling myself, ‘Ek din mera bhi aayega (One day my time will come),’” says Nikhat. She admits that a shadow of doubt had crept into her mind as well in the nearly one-year phase that she was out of action due to the injury. “More than the physical injury, there was a lot of mental scarring due to the injury. There was a time during the rehabilitation period when I was not confident about my boxing. I had no confidence while throwing punches,” she admits. Nikhat is one of the three boxers who are part of JSW’s Sports Excellence Program. Right after she dislocated her shoulder, the organisation swung into action, providing her with a psychologist, a physiotherapist and a strength and conditioning coach apart from a boxing coach — American Ronald Simms — to help her recover and come back strong. Simms even brought down American professional boxer Tyriesha Douglas to JSW’s Olympic Training Centre in Karnataka’s Bellary to train with Nikhat. “Our physiotherapy team took care of her shoulder and ensured that she built it up slowly. At the same time, our strength and conditioning team worked with her to help her maintain the rest of the body as well as she can, given the circumstances. Then as the shoulder heals, the strength and conditioning guys help build the shoulder in alignment with the rest of the body. You can’t have one shoulder that’s bulked up more than the other. Simultaneously, she would have sessions with our consulting psychologists because coming back from such an injury requires a lot of confidence,” says Rushdee Warley, CEO of JSW’s Olympic Training Centre.

Key to success: Never let the ball drop!✊🏻 pic.twitter.com/OOQhckGiPJ

— Nikhat Zareen (@nikhat_zareen) March 16, 2018

Sensing her mental block in getting back to the sport, the brain trust at the JSW Centre decided to send her to Guwahati, where the Youth Women’s World Championships were happening in November last year. She was to spar there with the best youth boxers from around the world. “We wanted her to see that she’s as good as the best boxers in the world who are just a few years younger to her. Nikhat’s just 21 years old. That exposure definitely helped. She hadn’t been travelling to competitions for a while due to the injury, so all the competition she was getting were Indian boxers. She was sparring with the same people all the time, so we wanted her to get the tactical and technical challenge of fighting against boxers from outside the country. We wanted her to see the best in the world up front,” says Rushdee. “After my rehab, I had started boxing only in October 2017. Until then, I had been doing only shadow boxing and bag work. In November, I went to Guwahati where the Youth Women’s World Championships were happening. I went there to eliminate the fear of boxing from my mind. Sparring with the world’s best youth boxers there gave me the confidence to get back in the ring,” says Nikhat.

Just like with a ball, the harder you hit the ground, the higher you rise🙌🏻 #gettingstronger #absworkout #nopainnogain pic.twitter.com/Kadxnwbj1W

— Nikhat Zareen (@nikhat_zareen) October 24, 2017

That “exposure trip” worked like a charm. A month later, she participated at the senior Nationals, where she lost in the semi-final by a split decision. Despite defeat, Nikhat was satisfied at having made it so far despite not being completely fit and with just a couple of months of training under her belt after the injury. In January 2018, she entered the India Open where another split-points decision happened. But not before she had beaten Haryana boxer Neeraj, who is a beneficiary of Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports’ TOP Scheme. “I lost in the quarters by a split decision to a Mongolian boxer. I was hoping to be in the Commonwealth Games team, but I wasn’t ready for that.” That, is now behind her. Her shoulder and psyche ready for rigours of competitive boxing, Nikhat is targeting a spot in the Indian team for the World Championships and the Asian Games later this year. “I’m now ready. There are a few events this year before the World Championships which I am targetting to get the spot on the national team for the Asian Games and the World Championships,” she says.