Ricky Doverspike, an upcoming junior and a third year starter for the men’s tennis team, is slowly recovering from the debilitating injury he suffered late last season.
While participating in a routine agility drill during the week of final exams, Doverspike fell awkwardly on his left wrist.
“It was the worst possible day for him to practice,” said head coach Billy Pate. “He had been up the whole night before studying. We assumed he had a jammed wrist until they took the MRI.”
The MRI showed that Doverspike had torn the ligament that attaches the wrist bone to the ulna, the bone which is on the same side as the thumb. This is known as a TFCC (triangular fibrocartilage complex) Tear.
Even after this injury, Doverspike attempted to play through it in the NCAA Tournament. Unfortunately, the pain in his wrist was excruciating, and the right-handed athlete was unable to hit his two-handed backhand shot.
Since having the surgery to reattach the ligament, in which the doctors placed a metal plate in his hand and cut off a few inches of his ulna, Doverspike has been going through rehab and physical therapy to return to form for next season.
Now that he’s back in Tuscaloosa for summer classes, Doverspike undergoes the physical therapy three times a week at DCH Medical Center, which involves working out his wrist and arm while having them submerged in warm water.
Doverspike said there is no pain in his wrist normally.
“There’s no pain right now,” he said. “It’s only tender when I try to put weight on it or if I do anything which stretches my scar tissue.”
Pate said Doverspike should be fine by the time the season starts back up.
“He has plenty of time to recover, and it wasn’t his right hand or arm,” he said. “After any kind of injury, you have some muscle atrophy, where the entire arm weakens. The immediate goal is to swing without any pain, and right now he can’t do it.”
Doverspike said his doctor has tentatively placed his return for sometime in October.
“My first two check-ups went really well, and I’m ahead of schedule,” he said. “The doctors are very optimistic about my recovery.”
