Source TOI
NEW DELHI – The India Open Super 750 tournament faced a fresh wave of embarrassment on Thursday as bird droppings fell onto the main court, twice halting a high-profile match between India’s HS Prannoy and Singapore’s Loh Kean Yew.
The incident has sparked a heated debate over the state of the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium, directly contradicting recent assurances from the Badminton Association of India (BAI) that the venue was “pigeon-free” and maintained to international standards.
Chaos on Court 1
The interruptions occurred during the men’s singles second-round clash on the main television court. Play was first paused during the opening game and again early in the third game as droppings fell from the stadium’s high ceiling onto the playing surface.
Match officials were forced to intervene, using towels and wipes to sanitize the court while the players waited. Prannoy, who eventually lost the grueling three-game battle, confirmed the cause of the delay in the mixed zone. “I think it was bird shit which kind of halted the game,” he told reporters, noting that while such incidents are rare at this level, they are becoming an unwelcome theme of the tournament.
The “Pigeon-Free” Contradiction
The timing of the disruption is particularly awkward for the BAI. Just 24 hours earlier, BAI General Secretary Sanjay Mishra had dismissed hygiene concerns raised by Danish shuttler Mia Blichfeldt. Blichfeldt had slammed the facility as “dirty” and “unhealthy,” specifically mentioning birds flying inside the arena.
In response, Mishra had claimed that Blichfeldt’s complaints were directed at the training facility rather than the main arena. He asserted that the competition venue was being kept “clean, dirt-free, and pigeon-free.” Thursday’s mid-match cleanup on the main court has left those claims in tatters.
A Mounting List of Woes
The “bird poop” incident is only the latest in a series of logistical and environmental challenges plaguing the event:
Animal Intrusions: On Wednesday, a monkey was spotted in the spectator stands.
Pollution and Health: World No. 2 Anders Antonsen withdrew due to air quality, while others report struggling with the smog.
Infrastructure: Players have complained of freezing temperatures and occasional power flickers during matches.
With the World Championships scheduled for August, the BAI is under immense pressure to resolve these sanitation and security issues to avoid further international backlash.
