India Open badminton in Delhi postponed due to relentless COVID-19 second wave

CHENNAI: Taking into account the raging coronavirus second wave and lockdown in Delhi from Monday night, the Badminton Association of India (BAI) has postponed the India Open, an Olympic qualifying event, that was supposed to be held next month. The BWF World Tour Super 500 meet was scheduled to be held from May 11-16. The BAI said that the new dates will be announced later.

"It is very unfortunate, but we are forced to postpone the tournament. We had a meeting with BWF. The coronavirus situation in Delhi is very bad and there is a lockdown until April 26. We have no idea what will happen next. After consulting with all the stakeholders, we feel this is the right move," Ajay Singhania, BAI general secretary, said in a Zoom interaction.

The governing body of badminton in the country was forced to take the decision as Delhi, where the event was scheduled to be conducted, is the worst-hit city with over 20,000 cases in the last twenty four hours. Singhania said that they're taking every precaution to ensure that the camps are held in a safe manner for those who are a good bet to make Tokyo Olympics. "We had worked very hard and we were hoping for a good tournament. The camp has been postponed and only those who have the chance to qualify for the Olympics will be part of the camp," Singhania added.

The Badminton World Federation (BWF), the world governing body, also confirmed the development.

"The decision (postponement) was made in consultation and collaboration with local health authorities in Delhi and the Badminton World Federation," the BWF said in a release.

"All attempts were made by organisers to conduct a safe tournament environment for all participants, but the recent spike in COVID-19 cases and gravity of the situation in Delhi left BAI no choice but to postpone the tournament," the release added.