NEW DELHI: Danish shuttler Mia Blichfeldt on Tuesday was critical of the playing conditions at the $950,000 India Open for the second year in a row, after questioning the state of the venue last year.
At the 2025 India Open, the Dane had fallen ill during the Super 750 event following which she had put out an Instagram post saying she had been getting sick for two years in a row during her time here. She had been critical of the smog, “birds shitting on the courts and dirt everywhere”.
After winning her women’s singles first round against Chinese Taipei’s Chiu Pin-Chian on Tuesday, she again criticised the conditions when asked if things had improved for her.
“Last year I made a complaint about the conditions because it’s not fair to the players. A lot of us get sick and what that means (is) we cannot participate in the tournament the week after. Everyone is doing their best and they know that it’s something that needs to be better because it’s not good for the players to be in a hole where there’s birds and bird shit on the floor and stuff like that. This year I’m only eating in my room to try to not get sick,” said Blichfeldt, who will face former world champion Ratchanok Intanon next up.
“To be fair I think it (conditions) can be way better but again I’m sure that everyone around in the Indian association and everyone as a volunteer here do their best so I’m hoping that it’s going to be even better for World Championships in the summer.”
This year the matches are being held at the 15,000-seater Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium, a much larger venue which was built to host badminton matches during the 1982 Asian Games. Till last year, India Open — the country’s biggest badminton tournament — was held at the adjacent KD Jadhav Indoor Hall, which this time is being used as a practice and warm-up arena. The Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium is also scheduled to host the BWF World Championships in August, the first time India will be hosting the event since 2009 when it was held in Hyderabad.
“The floors are dirty and there is a lot of dirt on the courts. There’s bird shit, there’s birds flying around in the arena. For me as a European player maybe I’m more sensitive also with food and bacteria and that kind of stuff so this time I’m actually trying just to like stay in my room and eat so I don’t get sick. It’s a good test for me also when I come here for the World Championships in August,” said the 28-year-old, referring to the KD Jadhav Indoor Hall.
Asked about the conditions inside the playing arena at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium, Blichfeldt said: “The arena is really good. It’s huge. I like to play in conditions like this and the hall fits my game really well. I played two games really great in the arena now so I’m happy with the court conditions, but not the health like conditions,” said the Dane.
Responding to Blichfeldt’s comments, Badminton Association of India (BAI) secretary general Sanjay Mishra said in a statement: “Mia’s comments were made in a broader context around general playing conditions and personal health sensitivities, and not about the playing arena at the India Open specifically. She has clearly stated that the competition venue itself is well maintained.
“As mentioned in her conversation regarding the warm-up area, it is important to note that she was referring to the KD Jadhav Stadium, which serves as the training venue, and not the main playing arena. As an athlete who is more sensitive to dust and environmental factors, she was sharing a personal perspective on how conditions can sometimes impact her health. The playing arena has been kept clean, dirt-free and pigeon-free, and several players have expressed satisfaction with the conditions at the venue.”
