The Malawi Beach Soccer team currently in Seychelles for the Cosafa tournament suffered a setback when one player collapsed while another one was hospitalised just hours before the team plays its first game against Mauritus later today.
Zamir Hamisi, who is one of the key players, fell sick while training with the team on Wednesday morning.
Beach Soccer Malawi (BSM) general secretary Davis Sado said Hamis developed fever just after the team arrived at its training venue.
“The team clinician Noel Kapapa put the player under close observation pending tests from Seychelles National Hospital. It was a scary experience, but we hope he will be okay. We are more worried because another player Yona Mbisa collapsed while training just minutes after Hamis was taken ill,” said Sado in a telephone interview from Seychelles.
The team manager suspects that the hot conditions might have led to Mbisa collapsing as the temperature was around 33 degrees celcius.
“We suspect that it was heat exhaustion. He later recovered and started training with his fellow players. It is very worrisome because we brought only nine players. With Hamis ruled out, it means the coach will have to do with eight players only. Beach soccer is very intense game,” said Sado.
He said for them to last in the tournament, they need to avoid injuries.
