France-based Zimbabwe rugby international is determined to come back stronger confident that he will make a strong comeback after undergoing a successful surgery to repair the torn Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) in his right knee.
The powerful tight head prop Mudariki, who plays for USON Nevers in the second tier Pro D2 competition suffered a cruciate ligament injury to his right knee in their final match of the season.
The injury effectively rules him out for Zimbabwe’s campaign at next month’s Rugby Africa Cup in France, which doubles as the final qualification tournament for the 2023 Rugby World Cup.
The Sables squad for the qualifiers will be captained by Farai’s brother Hilton, the former Jersey Reds scrumhalf.
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I would like to thank everyone for the love and support over the last week or two. The surgery went well thanks to Dr Freychet and the team at the Centre Orthopédique Santy in Lyon. pic.twitter.com/M5CXpCDjx3
— FM (@faraimudariki3) June 10, 2022
In a statement on Friday, Mudariki said he is grateful for the messages of support he has received and vowed to come back strongly from the latest injury setback which is expected to keep him on the sidelines for several months.
“I would like to thank everyone for the love and support over the last week or two. The surgery went well thanks to Dr Freychet and the team at the Centre Santy in Lyon. As we all know with this type of injury I’ll be out of rugby for a while. The plan is to approach this obstacle head-on and come back even stronger than before. See you all soon,” said Mudariki.
The 27-year-old ex-Worcester Warriors player was earmarked to play an important role in Zimbabwe’s pursuit of qualification for the 2023 Rugby World Cup after a successful season.
The Sables star was one of the standout players in USON Nevers’ impressive run to the Pro D2 playoffs, where their strong push for promotion to the Top 14 eventually came to an end in the semi-finals.
Sadly for Zimbabwe, Mudariki suffered a cruciate ligament injury to his right knee in their final match of the season.
Mudariki was rewarded with a two-year contract extension with the French second-tier club in June last year due to his brilliant form.
He is one of the several players who have been ruled out of Zimbabwe’s Rugby Africa Cup campaign due to injuries.
The long list of injury absentees also includes, fellow France-based prop Michael Kumbirai, winger Tavonga Ablant, locks Andrew Evans and Kudakwashe “Goofy” Nyakufaringwa and Sharks flank Blithe Mavesere.