By a Staff Reporter
Kathmandu – Jharana Shrestha, an emerging volleyball player of the renowned New Diamond Sports Club, has decided to quit the game. She was included in the preliminary squad of the national volleyball team of Nepal.
Shrestha said that she decided to quit the game because of family issues.
“I have decided to quit this fame because of family issues. I am feeling awkward to quit my favourite sports all of a sudden,” said Shrestha, who is considered to be a rising player.
“I was planning to quit the game after the upcoming NVA Cup but I had to leave the game early due to family issues. I am planning to go abroad. Hopefully, I will reach the UK by the upcoming new year. Until then, I will spend my time with my family.”
Shrestha last tournament happened to be the Lok Bahadur Pun Memorial Volleyball Cup National Women’s Volleyball Championship held in Chitwan about a month ago. She helped her team win the title in her last tournament.
Twenty-one-year-old Shrestha, who is originally from Pathari, Morang, arrived in Kathmandu pursue her higher education and started playing volleyball for New Diamond Sports Club almost five years ago.
In the last five years, she won more than a dozen titles of national level as well as school-level championships with New Diamond. Before joining New Diamond, Shrestha used to play school-level volleyball at Pathari. New Diamond included her in the team after noticing her potential.
Shrestha’s announcement to quit the game has come as a major setback to New Diamond. The club is struggling to display its full potential due to a nagging injury faced by its star spiker Pratibha Mali. New Diamond’s coach Kumar Rai admitted that Shrestha’s decision to quit the game has added more trouble to the club. He added that it will take some time for the club to find her replacement.
“She is a setter. You can see for yourself how much difference it makes when she is in the team and when she isn’t,” said Rai. “We suffered unexpected defeats in Tiger Cup in Pokhara and PM Cup in Nepalgunj. But we lifted the titles of other tournaments in Damak and Chitwan in which Jharana had played,” added Rai.
