- By Namrata Vijay
- Thu, 15 Jan 2026 07:37 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
India Open 2026: India's star shuttler HS Prannoy's match against Loh Kean Yew of the ongoing tournament was stopped not once but twice owing to bird dropping at Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium.
These bird droppings stopped the match a few days after Sanjay Mishra, who is the secretary of Badminton Association of India revealed that pigeons rarely enter this area.
Prannoy was playing Loh in a high-octane clash for the second round and thats when the match was stopped.
Generally a badminton court is being wiped when the players ask for it. The referees themselves interfere when blood is found on court as play is not resumed till these stains are removed.
But a bird poop was seen getting removed in the middle of a Super 750 match.
"I think it was bird shit which halted the game," Prannoy told the reporters in the post-match press conference.
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But he didn't slam the conditions as a lot of players raised issue about air quality and Delhi's weather.
The World No. 2 Anders Antonsen also pulled out from the tournament owing to Delhi's pollution.
"I don't think so. It's pretty same for all the players out there. When you're on court, it doesn't matter. Just up to you what you want to do," he added.
"It's pretty cold out here. For sure, it is. But after the first few points, you get used to it" he added.
At the same time Loh revealed that he had been wearing masks and had stayed indoors when he is not playing due to the pollution.
The ongoing tournament has been criticised largely owing to unhygienic conditions at KD Jadhav Indoor Hall.
Mia in the post-match press conference had revealed that there were bird droppings at the training venue.
The venue of this BWF World Tour event was shifted from KD Jadhav Hall to the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium as the World Championships will be held later this year.