Samuels for NY bone surgery

KINGSTON: West Indies middle order batsman Marlon Samuels is scheduled to travel to New York this week for an appointment with orthopedic specialist Dr Answorth Allen in advance of preparations for a fourth surgical procedure on his degenerative left knee. The 22-year-old right hander, who was forced out of the South Africa leg of the current tour after the injury flared up in Zimbabwe, will be examined by Dr Allen later this week where the plan is to convince Samuels that bone graft surgery is his only option. Worried that a fourth surgical procedure would bring a premature end to his career, Samuels has adamantly resisted another operation but, according to co-chairman of the West Indies Cricket Board’s (WICB) medical panel Dr Akshai Mansingh, the surgery is “inevitable”. “I’m willing to discuss the timing (but) prolonging surgery isn’t in Marlon’s interest,” Dr Mansingh told CaribbeanCricket.com in a wide-ranging interview. Dr Mansingh, who has been treating the injury since Samuels was a teenager, said it was doubtful the knee could put up with the high demands of international cricket without surgery.

“The unfortunate scenario is that no one can guarantee 100 percent that he will make a full recovery even with the surgery. He needs bone graft surgery which is a significant procedure so it’s understandable that he would be nervous about it,” Dr Mansingh said. “This injury is potentially career-threatening so it’s a decision Marlon has to make. He has heard my opinion and I have heard his opinion. The best thing for Marlon now is for him to meet with the specialist in New York to allay certain fears he may have. Dr Allen is someone who will be involved in his injury management,” Dr Mansingh added. Samuels first had surgery on the left knee as a teenager in Jamaica and again in 2001 during the West Indies tour of Sharjah. A third procedure was done later in 2002 (by Dr Mansingh) to determine the extent of the post-Sharjah surgery healing. Because there are no guarantees that a fourth procedure will be successful, Samuels has been privately contemplating a plan to pursue his career while managing the injury. But, as Dr Mansingh put it, delaying the surgery is not in the batsman’s long-term interest. “Can you imagine what he’s going through to fathom that he may not get the perfect outcome? And, at the same time, you have to understand what the WICB is going through... having someone with Marlon’s talent and not knowing if he can last through a series with that injury,” Dr Mansingh added.