From bird poop to monkey in stands and pollution: Controversies rock India Open 2026 in Delhi

The incidents, which have put the on-field performances on the back burner, have raised serious issues on preparedness, player safety and administrative lapses

The India Open Super 750 badminton tournament has been marred with organisational lapses, questionable conditions and series of shocking events, with players constantly raising objections.

The incidents, that have put the on-field performances on the back burner, have raised serious issues on preparedness, player safety and administrative lapses.

This comes at a time when the same venue, Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium, is scheduled to host the World Championships later in the year — a tournament India will be hosting after 17 years.

'Bird poop' and monkey stun spectators, players

On Thursday (January 15), the second-round match between India's H S Prannoy and Singapore's Loh Kean Yew was abruptly interrupted at the stadium. Play was stopped twice on Court 1 as bird droppings fell onto the playing area from the ceiling.

The first break in the match came when Prannoy was leading 16–14 in the opening game, and the second occurred early in the deciding set, with the Indian ahead 1–0.

Officials were seen cleaning the area affected with tissues and wipes.

“It was bird shit that kind of halted the game,” Prannoy said after his 21–18, 19–21, 14–21 defeat.

Initially, commentators and spectators were confused as to why the chair umpire raised his arm to suspend play without explanation.

Loh was uncomfortable as he looked at the ceiling and reacted with disgust when he looked back at the floor.

With hygiene issues already been flagged earlier in the tournament, the officials faced another embarrassment when a monkey was spotted in one of the spectator galleries on Wednesday (January 14).

The unexpected spectator drew attention inside the stadium and on social media.

Though the animal did not disrupt the training session, the organisers termed the incident "unfortunate". However, the incident added to the already loud noise around operational lapses at the venue.

Pollution concerns

Adding to the woes is Delhi's pollution and air quality. Players have flagged serious concerns over health conditions at the venue.

Loh, a former world champion, spoke about the impact of Delhi's pollution on his physical health.

“Everyone’s stamina just dropped like two levels,” he said. “The weather is not good. My health dropped quite a bit. I breathe less. I wear my mask when I can. I stay indoors as much as possible, but that’s the only thing that I can do.”

Earlier, world No.3 Anders Antonsen of Denmark had revealed that he pulled out of the the tournament and faced a $5,000 fine from the Badminton World Federation (BWF) because of "extreme" pollution in Delhi.

“Due to the extreme pollution in Delhi at the moment, I don’t think it’s a place to host a badminton tournament,” Antonsen wrote. “Crossing my fingers that it will be better in the summer when the World Championships will take place in Delhi," he added.

Mia Blichfeldt criticises conditions

Another Danish player, Mia Blichfeldt, who had criticised playing conditions last year, once again launched an attack after winning her first round. She said the conditions remained unacceptable despite a shift to a new hall at the IG Stadium.

“I actually hoped it would be better than the other hall, but it’s still very dirty, and the conditions are really unhealthy for the players,” Blichfeldt said in an interview with PTI Videos.

“Everyone is warming up in multiple layers, pants, winter jackets, gloves and hats, which is far from ideal preparation for someone who has to go on court, move quickly and even go into the splits," she said, claiming that the weather was too cold.

She also said there were pigeon droppings on the court and urged the BWF to intervene ahead of the World Championships.