Australian basketball great Lauren Jackson is rumoured to make a surprise comeback from retirement.
Jackson, who is a member of the Sport Australia Hall of Fame, retired from basketball in 2016 due to chronic pain following multiple injuries.
However, The Daily Telegraph’s chief basketball writer Matt Logue believes the rumours of a comeback are getting louder.
“Watch this space,” Logue said on SEN 1170 Mornings.
“She’s definitely keen (to return) and she’s definitely training.
“She’s fit as a fiddle.”
Jackson was cruelly denied a fifth Olympics in 2016 due to an ACL injury which forced her to call time on her career.
Post retirement, Jackson has been an advocate for medicinal cannabis and is part of an advisory board to develop the substance as a treatment for chronic pain and concussions.
In an interview with ABC News, Jackson said she “felt like a completely different person”.
“She’s had her cannabis trial recently and that’s working,” Logue continued.
“She retired because she was in so much pain and apparently it’s helping with the pain.
“I’ve reached out to the Opals … and they say she just needs to get fit.”
The timing of this rumour is perfect as Australia is set to hose the FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup in September 2022.
Logue says everything is in place for one of the most remarkable sports moments in Australian history.
“It would be a remarkable story,” Logue said.
“There’s no Liz Cambage and a World Cup on home soil in Sydney.
“What better story would it be to whack Lauren in there.”
To complete the comeback, Logue says Jackson will have to make a successful return in the WNBL and prove her fitness.
The FIBA Women’s World Cup begins on September 22.