June Mar Fajardo is planning to return sooner now that he has recovered from the throat surgery he underwent more than a month ago.
Pending the doctors’ approval, the six-time PBA MVP eyes suiting up in San Miguel’s match versus Phoenix Super LPG this Saturday in a clash of teams jockeying for playoff position in the Commissioner’s Cup.
“Next game, try ko. Hihingi lang kami ng clearance sa doktor kung papayagan ako maglaro,” he told reporters moments after watching SMB’s 85-80 loss to Magnolia Wednesday night at the SMART Araneta Coliseum.
Fajardo spoke to the press for the first time since going under the knife following an in-game accident during their clash versus Rain or Shine last October 9.
He was inadvertently elbowed by then-Elasto Painters import Steve Taylor Jr., although he was able to finish the game and help out in the 113-105 win.
The Cebuano star would, later on, be ruled out for a month after undergoing the operation, and his absence proved to be a big blow for San Miguel.
While his team struggled, Fajardo did not have it easy as well, especially in the early goings of his recovery process post-surgery.
“Nilagyan ng metal. Dami ko na ngang metal sa katawan e,” said the 32-year-old with a chuckle, as he already has a metal implant in the leg he injured back in early 2020 that forced him to sit out and recover for over a year.
Now he’s getting used to it, the way he handled his leg injury from before. Thus, his eagerness to come back as soon as he can for the Beermen.
“Siyempre nakakapanibago pero masasanay rin,” said Fajardo. “Parang dito sa tibia ko dati, nung una parang sobrang awkward, ta’s ngayon nakasanayan na. Kasi magiging part din ng body — hindi naman na tatanggalin ‘to e.”
Once he gets cleared, the nine-time champion vowed to do what he can for SMB especially now that they fell to 4-5 after Wednesday’s loss.
“Basta ako, pagbalik ko ibibigay ko lahat, makatulong lang ako sa team,” said Fajardo, who was averaging 22.0 points and 12.0 rebounds before being out.
“Nasa bottom of the standings ata kami ngayon,” he added as his team dropped to ninth in the standings, “so sana makatulong ako pagbalik ko.”
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The second game of each PBA gameday is live-streamed on SMART Sports.
