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".
Denmark's Mia Blichfeldt on Tuesday launched a fresh criticism of playing conditions at the new venue of the IG Stadium, in New Delhi, saying the shift in halls has done little to address the unhealthy and unprofessional surroundings for players and called for apex body BWF's intervention to improve the scenario ahead of the World Championships.
'I heard the voice recording, also read the statement, both are contradictory. In voice recording, she appreciated, but what I read was all negative.'
'Crossing my fingers that it will be better in the summer when the World Championships take place in Delhi.'
The Badminton World Federation (BWF) on Thursday said it has reviewed the facilities at the Indira Gandhi Sports Complex, which is hosting the $950,000 India Open, and asserted that the venue meets all requirements for staging the World Championships in August.
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P V Sindhu and the men's doubles pairing of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty sailed into the quarter-finals of the China Masters tournament with straight-game wins, in Shenzhen, on Thursday.
Rakshitha Sree Santosh Ramraj lost to Mia Blichfeldt of Denmark 12-21, 12-21 to bow out of women's singles quarterfinals.
Rising Indian shuttler Malvika Bansod's impressive run at the Hylo Open Super 300 concluded with a runner-up finish, as she fell to Denmark's Mia Blichfeldt on Sunday.
Danish badminton player Mia Blichfeldt has criticized the playing conditions at the India Open Super 750 tournament in New Delhi, citing pollution, dirt and bird droppings. She also said she contracted a stomach infection during the event, which she attributed to the poor conditions. The Badminton Association of India (BAI) has acknowledged logistical challenges in hosting the event and is looking for alternative venues. This isn't the first time foreign players have raised concerns about playing conditions at badminton events in India.
India's lack of bench strength was exposed as they suffered a crushing 1-4 defeat against Denmark in their opening Group D match at the BWF Sudirman Cup Finals.
Gayatri Gopichand and Treesa Jolly lost in straight games against China's Li Yi Jing and Luo Xu Min.
Ministry mulls graded funding for sports federations
Two-time Olympic medallist PV Sindhu overcame a sluggish start to defeat world number seven Han Yue of China in a thrilling contest, progressing to the quarterfinals of the Denmark Open Super 750 badminton tournament on Thursday.
India had a mixed day at the Madrid Spain Masters with PV Sindhu marching into the semis and Kidambi Srikanth's campaign coming to an end.
However, a tough contest awaits the former world No. 1 as he faces top seed Kenta Nishimoto of Japan next.
Star Indian shuttlers P V Sindhu and Saina Nehwal sailed into the second round of the Singapore Open with straight-game wins over their respective rivals in the women's singles event on Wednesday.
P V Sindhu stormed into the quarter-finals of the women's singles badminton at the Olympics with an easy 21-15, 21-13 victory over Denmark's Mia Blichfeldt in Tokyo on Thursday.
Sporting icons -- PV Sindhu and MC Mary Kom -- will be the star attractions among the Indians on Day 6 of the Tokyo Olympics on Thursday.
The 2021 All England Open will be the second tournament this year to offer ranking points to qualify for the Tokyo Olympics, after the Swiss Open.
The 26-year-old reigning World champion, who won the silver medal at the Rio Olympics in 2016, beat the world No. 34 21-9, 21-16 in 35 minutes. It was her sixth win over Cheung in as many meetings.
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.
The top seeded Indian duo, who reached the semi-finals of the season-opening Malaysia Open super 1000, was scheduled to face Chinese Taipei's Su Ching Heng and Ye Hong Wei in the opening round.
Satwiksairaj and Ashwini showed top-notch fighting spirit before going down
Sindhu beat fourth seeded Blichfeldt 22-20, 21-10 in 43 minutes
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.
The match comes on the heels of one of the biggest upsets in badminton history on Wednesday night, when men's singles world number one Kento Momota's Olympic dreams were crushed by number 38 South Korea's Heo Kwang-hee.
Former champions P V Sindhu and Kidambi Srikanth stayed on course to reclaim titles while a vintage Parupalli Kashyap too regained some form to seal places in the men's singles semi-finals of the US $350,000 India Open badminton, in Delhi, on Friday.
PV Sindhu crashed out of the ongoing Thailand Open in the opening round
Former champions P V Sindhu and Kidambi Srikanth advanced to the quarter-finals with easy victories, but the highlight of the third day's proceedings in the Yonex-Sunrise India Open badminton tournament was H S Prannoy's thrilling victory over Denmark's Jan Jorgensen.
P V Sindhu beat world No.12 Busanan 21-17, 21-13 in the women's singles opener, while Kidambi Srikanth demolished Sitthikom Thammasin 21-11, 21-11 in 37 minutes in the men's singles.
Saina Nehwal and P V Sindhu are on a collision course at next week's World Championships in Basel, Switzerland, as they have been placed in the same half after the world governing body re-conducted the women's singles draw.
Rejuvenated after a month-long break from a hectic BWF schedule, Sindhu and Srikanth prevailed over Japanese shuttlers Aya Ohori and Kenta Nishimoto in women's and men's singles respectively.
India's Lakshya Sen on Thursday progressed to the quarter-finals of the All England Badminton Championships in Birmingham, while HS Prannoy crashed out in the second round.
a look at the country's athletes' showing at the Tokyo Games on Thursday.
Reigning World champion P V Sindhu and B Sai Praneeth were handed easy group stage outings in the badminton draws unveiled on Thursday for the Tokyo Olympics, starting on July 23.
Fourth seeded Sindhu took 39 minutes to get the better of World No 22 Mia 21-13, 21-19, her second straight win over the Dane.
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