After All England, Swiss Open in doubt for PV Sindhu; BWF waives $5,000 penalty for Birmingham no-show

NEW DELHI: Two-time Olympic medallist PV Sindhu returned to India after being stranded in Dubai since February 28 following the closure of airspace in West Asia due to escalating conflict in the region. As a result, she had to give the All England Badminton, which began on Tuesday in Birmingham, a miss.

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On Tuesday, Sindhu informed that she might also miss the Yonex Swiss Open, a Super 300 event in Basel scheduled from March 10 to 15, due to curtailed flight operations across the Gulf region and the unavailability of tickets on most airlines. The tournament carries a prize purse of $250,000 (approx Rs 2.1 cr).




“Swiss Open is definitely a target. But as I speak, all the flights are going full. I have been trying every day to book myself on one of them, but there are no tickets available. Everything is via Dubai and it’s been a challenge. We all know taking the Dubai flight route is risky. Let’s see what happens in the next few days,” Sindhu said in a media interaction facilitated by SAI.

“I am searching for options but nothing has been working out so far. I have to also think about my coach (Indonesian Irwansyah Adi Pratama) and his safety.” Sindhu said that the Badminton World Federation has waived a financial penalty of $5,000 for her no-show at the All England, acknowledging the extraordinary situation. However, discussions around a possible loss of her ranking points ahead of a season involving the CWG, Asian Games and World Championships, are ongoing, with Sindhu expecting an amicable solution due to “extraordinary circumstances”.

“There are BWF regulations in place for skipping a Super 1000 or Super 750 tournaments by top-ranked players. If the world body doesn’t find the reasons valid, they would fine a player $5,000. I wrote a mail to BWF from Dubai. They understood my situation, as probably it was the first time that such a thing happened and waived off my penalty. That was one relief.

“About the ranking points, they told me to send a collaborative mail detailing my circumstances. I’m waiting for their response. They will convey the decision in a day’s time,” said Sindhu, who is also a member of BWF’s Athletes Commission.

“I just pray it was the first time and the last time I experience something like this. It’s going to be hard (to forget). You train so hard and then something completely beyond your control prevents you from competing in a big event.”

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