Wrong throwing techniques in cricket is a recipe for throwers elbow.
Do you have thrower’s elbow? Do you have pain on the inside of the elbow, pain on throwing, swelling and painful movements of the elbow and wrist? Is this affecting your throw? Is it lingering on and not getting better with time and first aid treatments? If so you may have something called “thrower’s elbow”.
This is similar to a tennis elbow except the pain is on the inner side of the elbow instead of outer side. This kind of injury comes on gradually and increases in intensity over time. If not treated effectively at an early stage it can quickly become chronic making it very difficult to reverse. There are several reasons why you might have this pain.
One most common reason is a poor throwing technique- such as the angle of throw or a forceful locking of the elbow joint causing shear and impact. Throwing too hard, too soon or with bad technique is a recipe for this type of injury.
Making sure to evaluate and correct this with the help of your coach early on will go a long way in preventing and managing this problem. Also evaluate whether your grip is too hard or intense. This could put excessive pressure on the wrist flexor muscles which in turn strains the elbow joint. Pay attention to adequate warm up of wrist and hand muscles prior to the practice and matches. This will reduce the throwing impact on the joint. Make sure you strengthen shoulder, scapula and elbow muscles outside of practice.
Your sports physiotherapist is the right person to help you with the correct exercises for this. Early management of elbow pain prevents it from becoming chronic. Usually a RICE protocol (Rest, Ice, Compression and Elevation) in the acute phase and then gradually doing gentle movements works well. If the pain does not subside with this then it is important to consult a sports physiotherapist. A risk injury screening done by a sports physiotherapist experienced in cricket injuries can help you prevent any kind of injury and you can continue to play without worrying about missing matches.