Denmark's Mia Blichfeldt once again called out the "unacceptable" and "highly unprofessional" conditions at the ongoing India Open in New Delhi, saying it is "very difficult to see how a World Championship could be held here".
'I heard the voice recording, also read the statement, both are contradictory. In voice recording, she appreciated, but what I read was all negative.'
Haven't seen anything bad: Srikanth defends India Open playing conditions
World no. 5 Jiang Zhen Bang and Wei Ya Xin were the first to dazzle as they beat Korea's Kim Won Ho and Jeong Na Eun 21-19, 21-18 in the mixed doubles semifinals at the KD Jadhav Indoor Hall.
In front of her home crowd, legendary boxer Mary Kom scripted history by winning a historic sixth gold in the Women's World Championships after defeating Hanna Okhota of Ukraine.
Lee, 2019 Hong Kong open winner, had finished as runner-up in the last edition and his dream of winning the title remained unfulfilled after he went down in the final for the second time in two years.
'I want to say to my Muslim friends that if they want to free Islam from the curse of terrorism, they have to embrace spirituality and yoga helps that. Yoga promotes serenity.'
Goof-up at World Championships: Russian anthem played incorrectly.
Besides Srikanth, the other players withdrawn are Ashwini Ponnappa, Ritika Rahul Thkar, Treesa Jolly, Mithun Manjunath, Simran Aman Singh and Khushi Gupta.
The star Indian pair of Chirag Shetty and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy will be the key attraction in the men's doubles category. However, they are set to face a stiff competition as the line-up includes the three-time world champion and world No. 2 Indonesian duo of Mohammad Ahsan and Hendra Setiawan alongside another Indonesian pair of Fajar Alfian and Muhammad Rian Ardianto, who are currently ranked eighth in the world.
Two players withdrawn from India Open due to COVID-19
Prannoy will take on Rajawat in the second round.
India's Lakshya Sen secured his maiden Super 500 title by winning the Yonex-Sunrise India Open with a stunning straight-game victory over reigning world champion Loh Kean Yew of Singapore in the men's singles final in New Delhi on Sunday.
None of the other three quarters boast of such a strong star cast but there would be a few mouth-watering opening round clashes to look forward to.
Defending champion Lakshya Sen looked in fine fettle as he registered a straight-game win over compatriot H S Prannoy to make a winning start to his title defence at the Yonex-Sunrise India Open Super 750 badminton tournament, in Delhi, on Tuesday.
Ashu beat Syria's Abdulkarim Mohammad Al-Hasan 8-1 while Kundu defeated Nao Kusaka of Japan 8-0 inside 90 seconds in a lop-sided 72kg bronze medal bout.
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