Published :
Updated :
For all latest news, follow The Financial Express Google News channel.
Krishna Rani Sarkar, a prominent national women's football player, revealed in a Facebook post on Friday that she has been suffering from a ‘rare’ leg injury for about a year and a half.
Additionally, she accused the Bangladesh Football Federation (BFF) of not taking her injury seriously, which began after the SAFF Championships.
In 2023, Debashis Chowdhury, the physiotherapist of the Bangladesh Cricket Board, advised her to seek treatment abroad, specifically in India or Australia, she noted.
However, Ms Sarkar claimed that when she informed the BFF of this advice, they did not take this seriously.
Ms Sarkar joined the under-14 team in 2013 and the senior national team in 2014, consistently playing until 2022.
Due to her injury, she noted, she had to sit on the bench for three matches during the Asian Games in China and was excluded from two consecutive tournaments.
“As a player, it is very painful to accept this. What hurts me the most is that I never saw any teammate, player, or coach advocating for my quick recovery. No one seems to care,” she added.
Asked, BFF women's wing chairman Mahfuza Akter Kiron denied the allegations, Prothom Alo reports.
“It is unfortunate that she [Krishna Rani Sarkar] has shared such words on Facebook,” she said.
Ms Kiron claimed that Ms Sarkar’s treatment is ongoing and that the BFF is bearing all the costs.
She noted that two months ago, Ms Sarkar requested to go to India for treatment and asked for assistance in obtaining a visa. When the initiative was taken, she herself backtracked.
Even on Thursday, Ms Kiron said BFF General Secretary Imran Hossain asked Ms Sarkar to submit a requisition for treatment in India, specifying the doctor and location.
At the same time, Ms Sarkar was also told that all her overseas treatment costs would also be covered by the BFF, ‘and now she has come up with such a Facebook status. It is wrong’, she added.