Air pollution in New Delhi has become a talking point lately, and it was once again put in the national spotlight during the ongoing India Open badminton tournament. World No. 3 Anders Antonsen didn’t travel to India for the tournament and was also fined by BWF. Taking to Instagram, he explained his withdrawal, blaming the air pollution issues in the Indian capital. Aside from the pollution issue, the tournament has also been slammed for the playing conditions, with Mia Blichfeldt calling them poor.
The criticism also raised questions about the World Championships, which will be held in New Delhi later this year. Blichfeldt even took to Instagram on Friday, questioning the reason behind the upcoming event being held in New Delhi.
‘Test event’
Speaking to IndiaToday.in, Badminton Association of India general secretary Sanjay Mishra urged fans and players not to worry about the World Championships, as the ongoing India Open is a ‘test event’. He pointed out that the India Open has been shifted to a new venue, the bigger Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium, from the KD Jadhav Indoor Stadium. Blichfeldt also raised a similar complaint last year when the tournament was held at the KD Jadhav Indoor Stadium.
“When you move to a huge venue as compared to KD Jadhav — almost three to four times bigger than what we were used to — there are bound to be challenges. That is natural. But there is no problem as such. We hosted the tournament very well there too. We are doing it here also. I don’t know why people are not understanding that this is a ‘test event’. We could have done this tournament in KD Jadhav also. But, we held it here because it’s such a big stadium and we wanted to understand what are the issues that we would encounter during the World Championships. We wanted to understand the challenges so that we can handle it properly during the world meet,” he said.
“I know there are a few issues. But, there’s nothing that we can’t manage,” he added.
Play was halted during HS Prannoy’s men’s singles match against Loh Kean Yew when a bird defecated on the court. The incident caught international attention and also went viral on social media.
